Story courtesy Jeff Spivack & Aug

A recent article at indeWIRE.com reports that Kevin Smith, in reaction to the negative Cannes and other screenings, has decided to do some editing on the film. Here's the article from indieWIRE.com.

"William Donahue, President of the Catholic League, held a press conference in New York City yesterday (Tuesday) morning intended to increase the pressure on Harvey and Bob Weinstein due to their involvement with Kevin Smith's new film, Dogma. Donahue announced the launch of a campaign by his organization calling on Disney to sever its relationship with its specialty division, Miramax Films, which is run by the Weinsteins. Miramaxdropped Dogma from its release slate in April and sold the rights to the Weinsteins, who are understood to be nearing a distribution deal announcement.

Yesterday Donahue, who led protests of the 1995 Miramax film Priest, unveiled a petition drive 'asking Michael Eisner to dump Miramax.' He indicated that the campaign will include website updates, a mailing to the League's 350,000 members, and a petition that he hopes will yield hundreds of thousands of signatures by Labor Day. Additionally, an ad calling for action was expected in today's New York Times.

Dogma debuted at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival and received an array of positive reviews as well as a handful or critical notices. Since then, addressing a common complaint about the length of the movie, Smith has acknowledged going back to trim the film for length. The Weinsteins have been pursuing a distribution deal since quietly screening the movie in New York and Los Angeles in advance of its Cannes debut. While a source close to the film told indieWIRE that a deal has been sealed with Lions Gate Films, a source close to the Weinsteins would not confirm the pact yesterday and a Lions Gate representative had 'nothing to say.'

Yesterday's press conference was the latest in a series of moves by both sides in the emerging controversy surrounding Dogma. Commenting on the film at yesterday's press conference Donohue admitted that he has not seen the movie, but indicated that he read a copy of the script that he downloaded from the Internet. 'It's rude, its crude, its filthy,' he explained, 'And we're sick and tired of the Weinstein brothers trying to dump their trash on Catholics.'

In April, reacting to Dogma star Ben Affleck's alleged statement that the movie was meant to 'push buttons,' the League stated, 'The Catholic League has a few buttons of its own to push, and we will not hold back.'

Those comments led Weinstein attorney Daniel Petrocelli, in a letter dated June 15, 1999, to express his clients' concerns about the League's position, indicating that the League's comments could be interpreted as implying an intention of violence. The letter expressly stated that, 'Any such impermissible activity authorized, committed, or encouraged by the League that harms or threatens harm to any person will not be tolerated. We intend to hold the League fully accountable for any wrongdoing, injury, or damage it causes.'

The next day, William Donohue characterized the Weinsteins as 'the true enemies of free speech,' adding, 'The Catholic League protest of Dogma will now proceed with even more vigor than ever before. Fascistic attempts to silence us will never win.'

In announcing their campaign to encourage Disney to drop Miramax, the Catholic League also issued a challenge to Hillary Clinton yesterday, asking her to denounce the movie. Referencing a New York Post report that the Weinsteins have pressured Clinton to drop an appearance on the cover of George Magazine in favor of a cover slot on Miramax's Talk Magazine, the League spotlighted the Weinsteins' contributions to President Clinton's legal defense fund. 'The Catholic League calls on her to break her association with the Weinsteins by refusing to accept another dime from them. We'd also like to hear her sound off on 'Dogma.'"