The Kerala High Court on Tuesday observed that movie reviews are intended to inform and enlighten people and not destroy and extort. The High Court was considering pleas against the recent trend of review bombing in the film industry. Justice Devan Ramachandran, who had earlier sought what action could be taken against persons deliberately posting negative reviews about films, said the reputation of individuals behind a movie cannot be sacrificed due to 'unbridled freedom of expression'.

Considering the petitions filed by the Kerala Film Producers Association and other stakeholders, the High Court directed the state police chief to comply with its earlier order about taking appropriate action against 'anonymous posts, which contain vituperative or virulent content'.

"The reputation of individuals behind a film cannot be sacrificed at the altar of unbridled freedom of expression asserted by individuals, who act under the mistaken impression that they are not governed by any parameters/regulations, particularly when there is nothing on record to show that any of them are registered, akin to journalists or such other service providers," the court said.

It said reviews are intended to inform and enlighten, but not to destroy and extort and this will be kept in mind by the police authorities very carefully. The court has now posted the matter for further hearing on November 21. In a previous hearing, the court had called for a "close watch" of online platforms so that anonymous and malafide reviews were not circulated.

Meanwhile, the state government on Tuesday submitted before the high court that the police have already initiated action in the matter based on a few complaints. It also said that "all anonymous posts are being watched and if any complaint is received, the same is being investigated very seriously".

The central government counsel told the court that a competent authority was looking into the issues and sought two weeks to file its reply, which the court granted.
(With PTI inputs)

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