International intrigue and diplomatic tension were nowhere in sight Christmas afternoon at the North Branch Cinema Theater, where 30 people defied hackers and North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un to see one of the first public screenings of "The Interview."
"We figured there's probably not a lot of North Koreans here, so we're safe," said Dan McNally, who lives in North Branch, about 45 miles north of the Twin Cities.
The theater was one of only 10 in Minnesota on Thursday showing the controversial film, which revolves around a plot to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
The Seth Rogen-James Franco vehicle had been shelved by Sony Pictures after the production company came under siege from Guardians of Peace, hackers that the FBI has linked to North Korea. When the hackers threatened terrorist attacks on theaters that showed the buddy comedy, the nation's largest theater companies pulled the film. In a surprise move this week, smaller theaters agreed to show it.
While two showings at St. Anthony Main in Minneapolis sold out, "The Interview" faced tough competition in North Branch from "Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb," "Unbroken" and "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies." Only one in six seats at the day's first screening was filled.
"We probably wouldn't have seen it" without the controversy, said Ado Dzubic, of Forest Lake, who came with five others on a family outing to "The Interview." "There was so much hype, we just wanted to see if the movie itself was worth it."
Critics and early viewers agreed that "The Interview" is less than a masterpiece. But thanks to threats from hackers that nearly derailed its release, the film has become an event.
Across the nation, hundreds of smaller venues made special holiday arrangements for the film after major theater chains dropped the movie that was to have opened on as many as 3,000 screens.
But with President Obama among others criticizing the decision, Sony officials changed their minds. "The Interview" became available on a variety of digital platforms Wednesday afternoon, including Google Play, YouTube Movies, Microsoft's Xbox Video and a separate Sony website.
The back story of "The Interview" has itself played out like a Hollywood satire, in which a cartoonish farce distracts from some of the holiday season's most prestigious films: "Selma," the drama about the 1965 civil rights march; Angelina Jolie's adaptation of the bestselling World War II story "Unbroken," and the all-star, big-screen version of Stephen Sondheim's "Into the Woods."
The possibility of violence was taken more seriously by the movie industry than by government officials. Last week, the Department of Homeland Security released a statement saying that there were no credible threats.
In North Branch, Scandia resident Sandra King said the hubbub is what got her to the theater on opening day. With Sony pulling the film once, she worried it could disappear again. "I wanted to see it as soon as I could," she said.
North Korea's objections to the film made no difference to Erika Costello and her son Jacob Pauna, who are big fans of Rogen and Franco.
The controversy is "just stupid," Costello said, "because those two are funny. Just nonstop laughing."
But Ron Philp, who is not a fan, said seeing "The Interview" was his way of lodging a protest against the hackers' threats.
"I'm here just because North Korea didn't want us to see it, and that's it," Philp said. "I probably won't even watch the whole thing."
So, collared after the screening, Dzubic was asked: Was it worth the hype?
"No," said Dzubic. "It tried really hard to be insulting."
But Todd Powell, who drove up from St. Paul for the film, said the quality was irrelevant.
"It was a statement," he said. "I don't want anyone coming into my town telling me what I can have in my theater."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Sharyn Jackson • 612-673-4853