Tokyo cops clear 'Hangover II'

TOKYO -- Japanese censors have given a thumbs up to an unaltered version of "The Hangover Part II" that Warner Japan is screening at one Tokyo theater with an R18 rating. All other local prints of the pic digitally mask certain male genital shots in a Thai tranny bar -- and carry an R15 rating. Tokyo Metropolitan Police censors, who are in charge of monitoring "obscene content" under Japan's legal code, have given the shots a pass for the R18 print saying the aim is arouse laughs, not lust. The pic was released on nearly 130 screens on July 1, but acting on complaints about the nudity of the R18 version, the Tokyo police launched an investigation, but decided not to prosecute. The cops, however, did ask Warner to release only the R15 version on DVD. The decision may open the way to more relaxed local standards for on-screen nudity, which has long been an issue for censors and distribs. Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com