Samoa has banned Sir Elton John biopic Rocketman at the country's only cinema due to its homosexual scenes, causing an outcry among locals on the Pacific island nation.

Key points: Samoa's censors said the film ban abided by the Film Control Act of 1978

Samoa's censors said the film ban abided by the Film Control Act of 1978 Gay scenes are regularly cut from movies in Samoan screenings

Gay scenes are regularly cut from movies in Samoan screenings LBGT activists said the ban sends a troubling message to the community

Apollo Cinemas in Samoa's capital Apia had Rocketman listed as playing up until last Friday when it wrote on Facebook that due to "censoring issues" it had to cancel the movie.

The theatre's technical specialist Simon Kenchington said the movie was rejected by Samoa's censorship office due to "homosexual content".

"The entire film was rejected … because of the homosexual content, basically. That was the reason," he said.

Samoa's principal censor Leiataua Niuapu Leiataualesa said his office was simply abiding by the Film Control Act of 1978.

When asked if the regulations needed to be updated for 2019, he said the film was not "suitable".

An official document shows Rocketman was rejected while Godzilla received a PG rating. ( Supplied: Apollo Cinemas Samoa )

"We're concerned with the cultural values and also the Christian beliefs here in Samoa — it's not appropriate for public viewing," he said.

Under Samoa's film classification guide, films that include explicit sexual activity, explicit sexual violence, promotion of drugs or offence to religions are subject to bans.

The move comes after Sir Elton slammed Russia for deleting gay sex scenes from the movie, which tracks his turbulent rise to stardom.

Mr Kenchington said blocking LGBT themes was "consistent with other censorship screenings".

"That's something we've always had to censor out, even if it's just a little kiss between two people of the same sex," he said.

Bohemian Rhapsody was censored in Samoa and China. ( Supplied: 20th Century Fox )

A screening of Bohemian Rhapsody, the blockbuster biopic of Queen frontman Freddie Mercury, went ahead in Samoa, but only after certain scenes had been cut.

Bohemian Rhapsody was heavily censored in China to remove any reference to Mercury's sexuality or his AIDS diagnosis.

In the case of Rocketman, Mr Kenchington said, there was a lot more homosexual content.

Mr Kenchington said it was not his place to say what was right and wrong, but he said the ban would cost the cinema money and censorship would only fuel interest in the movie.

"With the way the world is at the moment, it does make Samoa look very backwards," he said.

Social media backlash over double standards

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On social media there was an outcry from Samoans who had been waiting to see Rocketman, with many saying they would resort to sourcing it online.

Anric Sitanilei, a university student at the National University of Samoa, said in the past the film Milk, about US gay rights activist Harvey Milk, had been censored, while the Da Vinci Code, based on the bestselling Dan Brown novel, was banned because it "went against religious beliefs" in Samoa.

Mr Sitanilei said if the guidelines were followed, a lot of other movies which were screened in Samoa would also get banned.

"They allowed the screening of movies like John Wick — they still allowed kids under 12 to watch it, and they also allowed the screening of Red Sparrow. That movie was pretty intense as well," he said.

Apollo Cinemas said it had to cancel the movie due to "censoring issues". ( Facebook )

His comments were echoed by Alex Su'a, the president of the Samoa Fa'afafine Association and a prominent LGBT activist.

"I still find movies at the shop that are highly violent and find their way through," he said.

"The powers given to the principal censor is just too powerful."

The international community has also reacted to the ban. Local media reporting Tuisina Ymania Brown, the co-secretary general of Geneva-based non government organisation International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) had called it a "selective immorality" approach.

Depriving LGBT people representation on screen

The head of Samoa's Fa'afafine Association said banning Rocketman was a double standard. ( Facebook )

Mr Su'a said banning the movie deprived Samoa's LGBT community of seeing someone who shares their struggles represented on screen.

In Samoa, male homosexuality is illegal and carries a penalty of up to five years in prison.

However the ban on homosexuality does not apply to women, and there is wide acceptance of Fa'fafina, which is a recognised third gender in Samoan culture that applies to people who are assigned male at birth but display feminine qualities.

Singer Elton John's rise to fame is chronicled in Rocketman, which is banned at Samoa's only cinema. ( Reuters: Shannon Stapleton )

According to the United Nations 2016 Pacific multi-country mapping and behavioural study, there are about 30,000 gay men in Samoa — which is 15 per cent of Samoa's total population.

But Mr Su'a said because of the country's deep religious beliefs, LGBT issues were not talked about and homosexual men faced significant challenges.