Calling for the scenes to be restored, Natalia Zviagina, Amnesty International’s Russia Office Director, said “This homophobic censorship of a film about Elton John is as ridiculous as it is insulting for LGBTI people and anyone in the country who stands for dignity and non-discrimination. By censoring any expression of affection between two human beings of the same sex, this mutilated version of the film insults and dehumanizes same-sex relationships.”