Global blockbuster The Matrix Reloaded has been banned in Egypt because of its "violent" content and because it tackles "religious themes".

The country's censorship board said the film's storyline, about the search for the creator and control of the human race, may cause "crises".

Violent scenes also had the potential to "harm social peace", a statement said.

The first Matrix movie was released in Egypt but was criticised by Islamic newspapers for promoting Zionism.

The country's most senior film committee, made up of 15 critics, academics, writers and psychologists, watched the sequel on Monday.

The press launched a campaign to stop showing the movie, saying that it reflects Zionist ideas

A statement said: "Despite the high technology and fabulous effects of the movie, it explicitly handles the issue of existence and creation, which are related to the three divine religions, which we all respect and believe in."

The movie "tackles the issue of the creator and his creations, searching the origin of creation and the issue of compulsion and free will," it said.

"Such religious issues, raised in previous times, caused crises."

Violence also played a part in the decision, the committee said.

"Screening the movie may cause troubles and harm social peace," according to the statement.

One Egyptian critic, Wael Abdel Fatah, said: "The press launched a campaign to stop showing the movie, saying that it reflects Zionist ideas, and promotes Jewish and Zionist beliefs."

I created the Matrix. I've been waiting for you. You have many questions, and though the process has altered your consciousness you remain irrevocably human ergo some of my answers you will understand, and some of them you will not. Concordantly, while your first question may be the most pertinent, you may or may not realize it is also the most irrelevant.

If you're just getting started in the file-sharing world, trying to make sense of all the programs and networks available can be intimidating. There are many file-sharing mediums available, such as P2P networks, IRC and Newsgroups. Since P2P networks are the easiest mediums for downloading movies, we'll just cover the two networks that offer the quickest access to these files.

Background

There was a time when the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) had a great fear that the movie industry would fall victim to the file-sharing onslaught. Realizing the far-reaching consequences this new technology was having on the music industry, the MPAA joined the RIAA’s crusade against P2P networking. While publicly they oppose copyright infringement, they’ve managed to stay less vocal than the music consortium.

The music industry claims it has suffered greatly at the hands of P2P networking, citing a steady decline of sales in the past two years. However, things have faired differently for the movie industry.

Replicating a music experience doesn't require nearly as much expense or technology as a movie. With music, all one needs is an mp3 compatible CD player (virtually standard in most modern players) and a place to relax. With movies, it’s a whole different ball game.

Typically, a small computer monitor is inadequate. To truly imitate the movie experience, you'll need a state-of-the-art entertainment center that is well beyond the budget of a typical music downloader.

These facts have had an interesting effect on the movie industry. Although this type sharing has become common, it has not adversely affected this enterprise. Every year sets a new record at the box office, with no decline in site. In fact it’s probably that even if movie sharing becomes just as popular as mp3 sharing, the trouble in reproducing the movie experience has made this industry immune to file-sharing.