The film commissioner and Ridley Scott

While the Labour Party condemned Ridley Scott’s criticism of Malta, it came out with a strong defence of Film Commissioner Johann Grech – one of the untouchables in the Labour field with a hefty salary of €150,000 per annum – and found the occasion to criticise opposition leader Bernard Grech.

This goes on to show how an elite group under this government, living in their ivory tower, cannot be criticised by us mortals as they have carte blanche in all their decisions.

Mind you, as days go by, the power of these almighty is slowly eroding and the government is turning a blind eye to all the messages being sent. The day of reckoning will arrive and Labour will find out too late to turn back the tide.

Meanwhile, following Scott’s interview and his comments that no tourist should visit Malta, our film commissioner, who very willingly supplied millions of our taxpayers’ money to Scott, should have at least protested on behalf of the film commission and the Maltese public.

Ridley Scott speaks on stage during a Gladiator II conversation. Photo: Getty Images via AFP

We should not be degraded by these film directors and other local personalities who promote themselves as saviours of our film industry. When it comes to insulting the Maltese we should be the gladiators to defend ourselves.

Michael Vella – Sliema

Gladiator fans should decide for themselves

I would like to reply to the article ‘Gladiator director tells fans not to visit Malta on holiday’ (December 28).

My opinion, like many Maltese, is that the Gladiator fans or any tourists, for that matter, should decide for themselves whether to visit Malta or not. Malta is a country filled with rich history, sights and culture.

Many tourists come to Malta and have a positive opinion of the country.

I would strongly encourage the Gladiator fans to come see for themselves the sights and sounds of our beloved Malta. Our country has a lot of attractions, such as our fortified capital city of Valletta, the Neolithic temples, the fishing village of Marsaxlokk, the Blue Grotto, the beautiful islands of Gozo and Comino and much more.

The film shows many scenes of Malta, which I strongly believe the Gladiator fans should come and see for themselves. I would encourage people to visit Malta and see for themselves the places where the film was made and much more.

Malta was always a popular tourist destination and, despite Scott’s opinion, we will not see a decrease in tourists coming here.

With the success of this film, tourism to Malta will increase.

Mark John Galea – Sliema