Snatch Escapes Censure

The controversy surrounding Guy Ritchie's new film appears to have been a storm in a cup of Rosie Lee. Allegations by animal lovers that dogs and hares suffered during the filming of Snatch look set to be dismissed. RSPCA spokesperson Jamie Stevenson confirmed to Empire Online this afternoon (30 September 2000) that the society's Chief Inspector Mike Butcher watched Snatch yesterday and had come to the conclusion that there was no clear evidence that the filmmakers had mistreated animals during filming. Butcher - who works for the RSPCA's special operations unit and has special experience in the area of dogfighting - felt that 'the brief shots of dogs that were used in the film for dogfighting showed no firm evidence of cruelty.' A second complaint relating to a scene in which Brad Pitt, Jason Statham and Jason Flemyng go hare coursing also looks set to be dismissed. 'There was no obvious sign of the hare being torn apart,' Stevenson told us, 'and in this country hare coursing is currently legal.' The RSPCA will ask Ska, the production company for Snatch, to explain whether they filmed an existing coursing event or staged one specifically for the movie and if so, what the circumstances of filming were. 'But they're not obliged to give us any more information,' explained Stevenson, 'and if any offence did take place during filming, but it took place more than six months ago, we won't be able to prosecute.'