A still from the Dreamworks animated film Kung Fu Panda (Photo: sina.com)

The premiere of Dreamworks' Kung Fu Panda was postponed in southwest China's Sichuan Province to "appease the survivors" of the May 12 earthquake, a Beijing-based newspaper reported on Friday.

The film made its debut on Thursday in Beijing and will be shown from Friday across the country, but not in Sichuan, a State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) official was quoted by the Beijing News as saying.

The unidentified official said the decision was "market-oriented" and was made after the provincial cultural authorities consulted with the local cinemas. He didn't elaborate.

"As for when the film would be released in Sichuan, it should be decided by the cinemas," he said.

The news was confirmed by Paramount Pictures China, which distributed the film, and five major cinemas in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan, according to Friday's edition of the Beijing Morning Post.

The cinemas issued a statement on Thursday, saying that they decided to postpone the film because "some people do not comprehend the film and thus demurred at it.

"We will introduce the content and cast of the film to the public in an appropriate manner before showing it," the statement said.

China's Internet bulletin boards were buzzing with the debate over whether the cartoon comedy should be boycotted as some were complaining that it "snatched the necklaces and watches from the corpses of disaster victims."

The protest was led by an artist named Zhao Bandi, who accused the film of "exploiting China's 'national treasure' and its martial arts."

Other complaints mentioned its studio -- Dreamworks -- founded by Steven Spielberg (who withdrew from his role as an adviser to the Beijing Olympics earlier this year over concerns about China's role in Sudan) " according to a protest Zhao and two co-signers wrote to SARFT.

Zhao wrote in his blog that Zhou Baolin, a SARFT official, called him on Thursday and assured him of the postponement in Sichuan.

Netizens voiced their opinions as soon as the postponement was announced. Some called the decision "absurd" and others said it was "understandable."

"The film is a salute to the Chinese Kung Fu so we should not blindly boycott it," said a netizen named "World Famous Picture 123" on Netease Forum, one of China's most popular sites. "It has nothing to do with patriotism," he said.

The film, about a panda in ancient China who becomes an unlikely martial-arts hero, has grossed close to $120 million in America since opening on June 6.

(Xinhua News Agency June 20, 2008)