Cinemas Shun Film of Bush Shooting

Death of a President, the film that depicts the future assassination of George Bush as a comment on the civil liberties excesses of the current Republican administration, opened in fewer than 120 cinemas across America yesterday, with thousands of outlets refusing to show it.

The largest owner of cinemas in the country, Regal Entertainment Group, has blocked the film from its 6,300 screens, as has the second-largest chain, Century Theatres. Two major broadcasters, CNN and National Public Radio, have refused advertisements for the film.

Hillary Clinton has waded into the controversy, calling the shooting episode despicable. She has not seen the movie, as its creators have been eager to point out.

The film, which won the international critics' prize at the Toronto film festival last month, shows in documentary style the fictional shooting of Mr Bush on October 19 2007 on the streets of Chicago. Real footage of a Bush speech is used and images of him are digitally manipulated during the assassination scene, while the funeral of Ronald Reagan provides material for the post-shooting sequences.

The British director of the film, Gabriel Range, said he had expected the assassination scene to cause controversy. He used it, he said, as a metaphor for America's reaction to 9/11.

"A metaphor for 9/11 has to be something truly devastating and extreme, like the assassination of President Bush. The terrible event in the film would not have an impact that could be compared in any way to 9/11 if it involved the death of a fictional president."