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Russians criticize heavily edited version of Elton John film

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MOSCOW (AP) — Russian gay rights activists and cultural figures are criticizing the local distributor of a new movie about Elton John for cutting scenes in it depicting homosexual activity and drug use.

The deletions became known last week after a Moscow screening of the film “Rocketman.”

The Moscow movie theater Pioner, noted for its adventurous programming, said it would ask for an original cut of the movie with Russian subtitles. But the theater said Sunday it had not received a response from the distributor.

Russian news agencies reported that the distribution company said the scenes were cut to conform with Russian law but that the Ministry of Culture said it was not involved in the decision.

“In this way, the Russian distributor indirectly supports homophobia,” the Russian LGBT Network said in a Facebook statement. “We urge people not to support such a policy and not to go see the Russian version of the film.”

Although homosexuality is not criminalized in Russia, animosity toward gays remains strong. In 2013, the country passed a law banning so-called propaganda supporting non-traditional sexuality from being made available to minors.

Trailers for the Russian version of “Rocketman” showed it carrying a rating restricting it to viewers 18 years or older.

“So, one day we woke up in Saudi Arabia,” film critic Anton Dolin said on Facebook, criticizing the cuts. He said the “most repellent” aspect of the cuts was the removal of the statement at the end of the movie that John eventually found “the love of his life” and has raised children with the man he married in 2014.

Nonetheless, Dolin said, “the theme of the hero’s homosexuality is still central in the film.”

Ksenia Sobchak, a liberal TV star who ran for president in 2016, said purging all homosexual content from a film about the singer would make it meaningless.

A joint statement from John and the filmmakers said “that the local distributor has edited out certain scenes, denying the audience the opportunity to see the film as it was intended, is a sad reflection of the divided world we still live in and how it can still be so cruelly unaccepting of the love between two people.”

John has previously criticized Russia’s law on gay “propaganda” and comments by President Vladimir Putin that suggested gay people prey on children.

In 2015, phone pranksters tricked John into believing that he was talking to Putin about the issue. Putin actually later called the musician and said he would be willing to meet to discuss the matter, but no meeting has taken place.

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Celebrity

[PHOTOS] 2022 Cannes Film Festival: Supermodel Adriana Lima Boasts Baby Bump on ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Red Carpet

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Adriana Lima walks the "Top Gun: Maverick" Cannes Film Festival red carpet with boyfriend Andre Lemmers a baby bump. Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

CANNES, France (FNN) – Brazilian supermodel Adriana Lima brought a guest with her to the red carpet premiere of Top Gun: Maverick. No, we don’t mean her boyfriend Andre Lemmers, but her adorable–and well-styled–bun in the oven.

Lima, 40, graced the red carpet dressed in Chopard jewelry and a black long-sleeved Balmain gown with a baby bump cutout.

Lima announced in February that she was expecting her third child, this one being the first with Lemmers, and her first son. She has two daughters, Valentina, 12, and Sienna, 9, with ex-husband Marco Jarić.

 

Boyfriend Andrew Lemmers holds Brazilian supermodel Adriana Lima's baby bump on the 2022 Cannes Film Festival red carpet for the premiere of "Top Gun: Maverick." Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

Boyfriend Andrew Lemmers holds Brazilian supermodel Adriana Lima’s baby bump on the 2022 Cannes Film Festival red carpet for the premiere of “Top Gun: Maverick.” Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

 

Boyfriend Andrew Lemmers and Brazilian supermodel Adriana Lima enjoy a quick smooch on the 2022 Cannes Film Festival red carpet for the premiere of "Top Gun: Maverick." Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

Boyfriend Andrew Lemmers and Brazilian supermodel Adriana Lima enjoy a quick smooch on the 2022 Cannes Film Festival red carpet for the premiere of “Top Gun: Maverick.” Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

 

Supermodel Adriana Lima's hair almost perfectly the texture of the her baby bump-baring Balmain gown on the 2022 Cannes Film Festival red carpet for the premiere of "Top Gun: Maverick." Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

Supermodel Adriana Lima’s hair almost perfectly the texture of the her baby bump-baring Balmain gown on the 2022 Cannes Film Festival red carpet for the premiere of “Top Gun: Maverick.” Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

 

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Florida National News editor Mellissa Thomas and FNN News international correspondent Patience Eding contributed to this report. | info@floridanationalnews.com

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Celebrity

[PHOTOS] 2022 Cannes Film Festival: Tom Cruise and ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ Cast Grace the Red Carpet

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The "Top Gun: Maverick" cast pose for photos on the 2022 Cannes Film Festival red carpet. Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

CANNES, France (FNN) – Tom Cruise, Jennifer Connelly, and the cast and crew of Top Gun: Maverick landed for the 2022 Cannes Film Festival red carpet in style. (No, literally–the aircraft actually landed.)

Executive Producer Jerry Bruckheimer and his wife also joined the excitement on the red carpet for one of the most anticipated sequels in all of Hollywood.

 

"Top Gun: Maverick" star and producer Tom Cruise poses for photos on the 2022 Cannes Film Festival red carpet for the film's premiere. Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

“Top Gun: Maverick” star and producer Tom Cruise poses for photos on the 2022 Cannes Film Festival red carpet for the film’s premiere. Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

 

The "Top Gun: Maverick" cast pose for red carpet photos at the top of the Palais for the film's premiere at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival. Their arrival also included a flyover of red, white and blue smoke, in honor of the film, which everyone watched in amazement. Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

The “Top Gun: Maverick” cast pose for red carpet photos at the top of the Palais for the film’s premiere at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival. Their arrival also included a flyover of red, white and blue smoke, in honor of the film, which everyone watched in amazement. Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

Tom Cruise talks with "Top Gun: Maverick" co-star Jennifer Connelly during the 2022 Cannes Film Festival red carpet premiere of their film. Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

Tom Cruise talks with “Top Gun: Maverick” co-star Jennifer Connelly during the 2022 Cannes Film Festival red carpet premiere of their film. Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

Top Gun: Maverick star and producer Tom Cruise poses for photos during the 2022 Cannes Film Festival photocall earlier in the day prior to the film's premiere. Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

Top Gun: Maverick star and producer Tom Cruise poses for photos during the 2022 Cannes Film Festival photocall earlier in the day prior to the film’s premiere. Photo: Patience Eding/Another Concept via Florida National News.

 

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Florida National News editor Mellissa Thomas and FNN News international correspondent Patience Eding contributed to this report. | info@floridanationalnews.com

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Interfaith Group Asks Starbucks to Drop Vegan Milk Surcharge

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FILE - Actor James Cromwell arrives at the Los Angeles premiere of "Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom" at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Tuesday, June 12, 2018. Cromwell glued his hand to a midtown Manhattan Starbucks counter to protest the coffee chain’s extra charge for plant-based milk, Tuesday, May 10, 2022, in New York. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)

BOSTON (AP) — A group of Christian, Hindu, Buddhist and Jewish leaders is asking Starbucks to stop charging extra for vegan milk alternatives, saying the practice amounts to a tax on people who have embraced plant-based lifestyles.

In a statement issued Friday, an interfaith coalition led by Nevada-based Hindu activist Rajan Zed pressed the coffee chain to end the surcharges it called “unethical and unfair.”

“A coffee company should not be in the business of taxing individuals who had chosen the plant-based lifestyle,” said Zed’s statement, which was also signed by Thomas W. Blake, an Episcopal priest; Greek Orthodox clergyman Stephen R. Karcher; Buddhist priest Matthew Fisher; and Jewish rabbi ElizaBeth Webb Beyer.

The religious leaders cited numerous reasons why some Starbucks customers prefer alternatives to dairy, including dietary restrictions, ethical issues, environmental concerns, lactose intolerance, milk allergies and animal welfare.

Those who want plant-based milk should not have to pay more, they said, calling on the Seattle-based company’s CEO, Howard Schultz, and board chair Mellody Hobson to immediately drop the surcharge.

Starbucks outlets in the United States typically charge 50 cents to a dollar more for drinks made with plant-based milks.

Starbucks doesn’t charge for a splash of nondairy milk, including soy milk, coconut milk, almond milk and oat milk, though it does levy a surcharge for customized beverages made largely with those substitutes, spokesperson Megan Adams told The Associated Press.

It is not the first time Starbucks’ surcharge has riled the public. On Tuesday, activist and actor James Cromwell glued his hand to the counter of a Starbucks franchise in New York City to protest the practice.

Cromwell, 81, later used a knife to scrape it off. Police said there were no arrests.

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