Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff and his children's justice division chief Craig Barlow sat in the darkened theater, watching the Sundance Film Festival's screening of the controversial movie "Hounddog."

In their hands, they clutched copies of Utah's laws on sexual exploitation of a minor.

Prompted by a flurry of complaints about the movie, Shurtleff and Barlow attended a screening Wednesday at Park City's Eccles Theatre to determine whether "Hounddog" is child pornography.

"From everything that was being spread around, we were very concerned that it violated our sexual exploitation statute. A simulated sexual act with a child is a violation," Shurtleff said in an interview with the Deseret Morning News Thursday. "It has to be for purposes of prurient interest, and there were allegations."

Shurtleff said the movie, which features a scene in which 12-year-old actress Dakota Fanning's character is raped, does not break the law.

"There is absolutely no concern whatsoever about it violating child porn or sexual exploitation of minor statutes," he said after seeing it.

"Hounddog" has generated a firestorm of controversy and publicity with Christian groups calling for federal investigations.

"This movie looks like a clear case of child abuse to me," Dr. Ted Baehr, the chairman of the Christian Film and Television Commission, said in a statement. "The legal authorities should take harsh action against it."

The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights has already asked the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate if federal child pornography laws were violated during the making of the movie.

The film stars Fanning as Lewellyn, a girl who lives in the 1950s South and is obsessed with Elvis Presley, hence the title of the movie. She lives with her abusive father and overdisciplining grandmother. Directed by Deborah Kampmeier, the Sundance Film Festival's guide calls it "a southern Gothic tale about a girl finding strength to overcome debilitating obstacles."

The rape scene itself does not reveal much. Only Fanning's face and hand are shown in the movie.

"It was horrific," Shurtleff said of the scene, adding that he believes it was tastefully shot.

Fanning herself has been defending the movie, and "Hounddog" has gotten support from the Rape Abuse & Incest National Network. An online petition has also been launched in support of the film.

Shurtleff said if the film generates any more buzz at Sundance, he hopes that people start talking about child abuse and helping rape victims.

"As long as we keep it taboo, victims won't report it and perpetrators won't be prosecuted," he said.

Shurtleff said he first heard about the movie on Sunday at skier Picabo Street's Challenge for Children, a fund-raiser for children's advocacy centers. It was there that he met Fanning and had a chance to talk about the controversial film.

Overall, Utah's attorney general said he liked the movie.

"I thought in the end, there is some hope in recovery for children who find themselves kind of lost and stuck in a world of abuse," he said. "That's a good message that needs to get out."

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E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com