User reviews

This documentary is an excellent introduction to those aspect of Islam which is covers. Unfortunately it is far too limited in scope but I understand why this is. With a fixed amount available for production costs the choice was either coverage in depth of a small part of the whole or a diluted coverage of a wider range of topics.

It covers, at about 50 minutes each, three aspects of the religion: Mohammed and the origins, the culture and the first Christian crusade, and the Ottoman empire. Each is given excellent coverage but it is very much a secular description rather than a religious one. For those people who have little knowledge of Islam except for exposure to the western propaganda and the news of Islamic terrorist (a minute minority of the whole) this is an eye-opening documentary. Everyone should know about the rich cultural heritage which kept alive intellectual pursuits during the dark ages of western Europe. The sections on the Ottoman empire and the fall of Constantinople is well covered and provided some information I was not familiar with.

The photography is also excellent, showing some of the wonderful architectural achievements of the early Muslims. I was not clear how much of the footage was of real life situations being recorded, how much was scripted for the production, or how much (if any) was extracted from other footage, but the blend results in a well-balance, instructive video.

Highly recommended for everyone, especially those whose exposure to Islam is only that which is portrayed by the USA media.

This is a very good documentary and shows the more fair image of Islam not commonly seen in the West, of a religion that was flourished in culture, science, and art. It also shows its more violent parts in history. Nevertheless, I find that it ends all too abruptly and it fails to comment on any contemporary issues about Islam, which I guess would have made this documentary too long.

If you are interested in Islam, find yourself a copy of this and watch as it is entertaining and informative.

Especially at this time, it is necessary for Western audiences to learn more about Islam.

Islam Empire of Faith is about the political side of the religion of Islam. Great leaders of every nation and period practiced some form of religion, but many of these pseudo documentaries tend to bring the religion to the forefront rather than the politics of the era. Case in point, Americans wouldn't call Franklin Delano Roosevelt a great Christian leader. FDR is simply a great leader that practiced Christianity. I was hoping to learn more about the religion itself. In the end, Jews, Christians, and Muslims all believe in the same God, but kill each other in the name of that same God. I don't think that this is really what God had intended so it must be the people who pervert the religion; it is more a sin to conquer in the name of God than it is righteous. Most religions would have you believe that their spread is bloodless, but this is rarely the case. Changing people's beliefs is the hardest thing to accomplish without exercising some kind of force. It is always good to get every side of historical events, so this definitely has some value.

This is the first documentary that is fair to Islam and the Muslims. It is strongly recommended for anyone who lives in the West, particularly in the USA, and is skeptical of the propaganda that is constantly spread by the current U.S. administration and certain special-interest think tanks and groups.

If you are curious about Islam, and one of those who listen with a critical ear, this is a movie for you to watch. It is a first rate production that describes the faith accurately and recounts history as it was. It is also well crafted, with a beautiful cinematography, an excellent narration and a stunning display of art and architecture. Yes, it is missing a few things, but I don't believe anyone could have done a better job in trying to recount 1400 years of history in two hours.

Every human with a bit of intelligence combined with objectivity will appreciate what was revealed by this documentary. Watch it and search for the rest if not satisfied. There are some things which are not mentioned in the documentary about Islamic civilization at all. For instance, it does not talk about stars named with Arabic names in the first observatory founded by Muslims. This documentary mostly only sketches the Islamic civilization and it does a very good job with that considering the existence of those ignorant people asking "Do Muslim's believe in God?". It is sad but definitely there are lots of people who will benefit a lot from even 10 minutes of this documentary. It was shocking for me to realize the pilgrims' visits which could be considered as a kind of globalization achieved peacefully so many years ago.

I loved every bit of this documentary, I was really eager to know the genesis and the expansion of Islam. I would recommend this movie/documentary for anyone who wants to have an insight on Islam. And i would also recommend it seeing on a big screen TV.

Also the narration by Ben Kingsley is phenomenal.Not many people know that Kingsley is a Muslim ( born to an Indian Muslim Father and British Mom).

In this present era, with everything thats been said on TV, this is a great eye-opener for the most beautiful religion of the world. For anyone and everyone to know the history and the truth , i highly recommend.

"Islam: Empire of Faith" is quite good. I can't really fault much of its content. However, sadly, the documentary stops in the 16th century!! This does a disservice to Islam and provides absolutely no insight into Islam today and its relations with the rest of the world. What it does cover is from the birth of the religion in the 7th century, the early days of Islam, the Crusades and the final great years of Islam during the reign of Suliman the Great. Throughout the documentary, you hear lots of experts, see lots of video from various great cities, artwork and the like all set to nice music, Ben Kingsley's lovely narration and great polish.

My only complaint, and it's a minor one, is that the film seemed a bit too positive. In other words, instead of a critical look at the religion or Muhammad (which I would also like in a film about Christianity or Buddhism), it's mostly a glowing portrait. The only exception is that it talked about the crazy Egyptian who rules over Jerusalem and helped to spur on the Crusades (and this is the only documentary about the Crusades I've seen that talks about this). Still, it's well made and worth seeing even if a bit incomplete.

The photography is so good. It's too bad they didn't hire a historian to put the development of the progress of Islam in a more understanding theme. It jumps around so much that it distracts from the presentation. Nonetheless, it is a documentary one would want to see more than once.

"The Making of Islam: Empire of Faith" provided me with great insight into the faith of Islam. It was filmed and photographed beautifully, complementing the subject matter perfectly. The documentary depicted how the strength of the faith- a worldwide power grounded in spirituality, brought an empire together and united many people across three continents. This provided a secular perspective rather than solely a religious one, so it was interesting to learn about the religion in this context. It goes from the genesis of the religion, to the Crusades, and finally to the prosperous years under the reign of Suleiman the Great. Although the movie didn't exactly touch on contemporary issues of Islam (It stopped in the 16th century), I think it is an eye-opening documentary for those who don't know much about the religion, or who have been influenced only by western propaganda and news of Islamic terrorism. Another thing I found particularly interesting is how so many tribes within the peninsula that were previously isolated united under the banner of Islam, launching a huge, powerful, community tied solely in faith. This was due to the fact that Muhammad brought a sense of solidarity and a sense of mission that united all these different people. I think that this really shows the power that religion has on uniting people together, and reiterates the point that collective human power reigns over all. However, there was another thing that I felt that was missing from the documentary besides a contemporary view of the religion. I feel like the documentary was a little biased, or at least cherry-picking of it's information and pictures. It didn't really discuss the sometimes violent, gruesome aspects of conquest. Overall, I really enjoyed this informative documentary, and I would recommend it to anyone interested in learning more about Islam in a historical context- to learn more about how it developed to be one of the biggest religions in the world today. In fact, I think it is especially great for those who don't know very much about the religion in the first place.

The story structure is okay, in that it has a logical easy to follow flow. It uses maps which are helpful.

However, this documentary completely buries the atrocities Muhammad and his followers committed. Everything is spun to make Mahammad appear like a perfect humanitarian. When it claimed that citizens of its conquered cities converted to Islam willingingly, and that the threat of death for refusing had no impact on their decision to convert, I could not bear it anymore and stopped watching in disgust.

i was so looking forward to this film... methought the title held much interesting promise... i was cozy to it at first, however, as the film progressed, I couldn't understand why the director chose to propagandize rather than tell a story depicting the human condition... all the material was there to tell a great story of two peoples, but instead the director prostituted himself to covert politics instead of the art of storytelling... too bad.... the content turned me off as i was never given a chance to make my own mind up, but rather I was constantly told how to 'feel and think' about the story's dilemma... the director missed a great artistic opportunity... that's why i'm giving it a score of 1(awful)...but I did like the score!

Funded mostly by Iranian state oil and mining companies, this documentary is dazzling in its presentation, but careless about the historical facts. A mixed bag of a documentary, but especially good at the "docu-drama", "edu-tainment" end of the documentary spectrum.

One of the most interesting parts of the documentary as presented on the DVD is the "making of" segment which allows one to see some of the means of production and just how much of the film was guided by the director and his Iranian translators and handlers.

Some parts are highly entertaining and others are tendentious and "propagandizing". It is in some ways a tour-de-force of the "infomercial", but this time for an entire civilization.

It's clear that the documentary, while visually appealing and educational in its celebration of Islamic cultural and scientific achievements, presents a narrative that is notably selective and sometimes inaccurate. It omits crucial historical events like the European efforts to aid Constantinople, including the pivotal Battle of Varna, and inaccurately describes architectural feats like the Hagia Sophia's dome. Additionally, it simplifies complex historical interactions, particularly around the Crusades and the devshirme system, thereby risking a skewed understanding of the past. Given these inaccuracies and omissions, I would caution against relying on this documentary for a comprehensive view of Islamic history. Instead, I urge you, the reader, to seek out more balanced sources, engage with a wide array of scholarly work, and actively participate in discussions that challenge and expand our collective understanding of history. Let's strive for a deeper, more nuanced grasp of our shared past by going beyond the surface-level portrayals offered by such documentaries and pop history.