DVD comedy errs with fake licenses

THE ISSUE The "Superbad" movie packages, including a fake state license, are being sold by Wal-Mart.

MAYOR Mufi Hannemann -- not keen on art, in the form of a juvenile movie, imitating life with the possibility of real consequences -- did the right thing in asking Wal-Mart to stop selling its exclusive DVD packages that contained phony Hawaii driver's licenses.

Though the world's largest retailer pulled the "Superbad" DVDs from island stores, it had not yet decided by week's end to do so in its other outlets. The company should, if not for its own potential liability, then for the problems the fake licenses could cause here and elsewhere.

Sony Pictures, the producer of the movie in which a teenager tries to buy $100 worth of liquor using the counterfeit Hawaii ID, defended the promotion, saying the license's features "make clear" it isn't real.

The city, however, said the license is close enough for nefarious individuals to copy and reproduce with a photo replacing that of a hologram of the movie's characters. So concerned was the mayor that he notified the Department of Homeland Security about the cards.

The fake document could also cause problems for law enforcement, liquor regulators as well as bars, stores and restaurants. While the movie played lightly with the appearance of Hawaii's rainbow-adorned license, duplicating it could draw fines and prison terms.

Publicity about the fakes in the islands could be enough to forestall duplication or use by underage people here, but its distribution through Wal-Mart's global network has it being sold on eBay and other Web sites.