Ataque Terrorista

I'm failing to understand how anybody could give this more than three or four stars. Everything about it reeks of ITV drama; the entire premise has been simplified to a ridiculous point and the presence of serious budget restrictions are hard to ignore. Anyone who has complemented the soundtrack should get their ears checked, along with the rapid scene changes it just adds to the undue sense of melodrama.

I was going to give one star but the performances of the lead characters deserve more than that. However the supporting cast are just shocking - although I feel a lot of this is due to the unnatural dialogue in the script.

How this ever made it onto the big screen is beyond me.

The story telling, acting and overall directing are a bit ankward for such a topic, very "hot" in 2007, two years after the terrorists attacks in London and six years after 9/11 tragedy. But it tries to be honest, trying to analyze the tensions between Muslims and "European" communities in the most factual way. The screen writers tried to do their best, we can't deny that. There is no good Europeans and Bad Muslims scheme here, that is the main strength of this movie, that we can add to the list of other features such as SORRY HATERS, FIVE MINARETS IN NY, TENTACLES 8, UNTHINKABLE; all post 9/11 movies, interesting material that makes you think about many many things.

I voted more because of the idea conveyed by this movie, even if it is not the best. I did not like the title All Catholics are not Pedophiles, all Muslims are not Terrorists! One can not mix religion and evil people. This movie - a fiction - is excellent to remind viewers that good Muslims are suffering too. Terrorists are like leaven poisoning the world with false teaching.

Don't let the tagline deceive you"

The film attempts to portray a complex issue, but ultimately falls short. It suggests that sympathizing with Muslims automatically equates to sympathizing with potential terrorists. This is a harmful stereotype that reinforces Islamophobia.

The tagline is misleading. While the film does explore themes of racial profiling and the aftermath of the 7/7 London bombings, it ultimately reinforces rather than challenges existing prejudices. For example, the scene where a white police officer interrogates a young Muslim man using racist language is problematic. While the film attempts to justify this behavior by revealing the officer's interracial marriage, it does not adequately address the systemic issues of racism within law enforcement.

Furthermore, the romantic subplot between the cousins feels unnecessary and detracts from the film's more serious themes.

It's important to note that the director's religious background does not inherently determine the quality or accuracy of the film. However, in this case, the film seems to perpetuate harmful stereotypes about Muslims, which is disappointing.

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning

This curiously old fashioned (in terms of style and presentation) thriller was released in 2007 but has the look of a film from about 1997. However old it looks, though, it's got a story torn straight from today's headlines with it's themes of suicide bombings and brain washings of young muslims into fanatical extremism, and even more so about them being homegrown. The opening gambit of an innocent man being shot by armed police is also an obvious slant with the real life shooting of Jean Charles De Menezes. However, none of it is presented in a dark, foreboding sort of way, more in the style of a slick, efficient thriller like in the style of an episode of The Bill. While none of it offers any serious food for thought, it's well made and enjoyable enough on this level. ***