The movie
The Mauritanian
Held captive without charge at Guantanamo for 14 years based on a confession elicited through torture, Mohamedou Ould Slahi wrote a bestselling memoir that was published in 2015 while he was still incarcerated.
Length: 129 min
Country: United States
Language spoken: English, Arabic
Language subtitles: Dutch
Cast: Tahar Rahim, Jodie Foster, Benedict Cumberbatch, Shailene Woodley,
Director: Kevin Macdonald
Release date: 2021
Description
Held captive without charge at Guantanamo for 14 years based on a confession elicited through torture, Mohamedou Ould Slahi wrote a bestselling memoir that was published in 2015 while he was still incarcerated. Among the many horrors he was subjected to, he was ‘force-fed seawater, sexually molested, subjected to a mock execution and repeatedly beaten, kicked and smashed across the face…’ (The Economist). Kevin Macdonald’s (‘The Last King of Scotland’) searing courtroom drama features an amazing performance by French star Tahar Rahim as Slahi and a stellar turn by Jodie Foster as the lawyer fighting to set him free.
‘The film’s power lies in its direct confrontation with the ideology that underpinned it all. Lingering shots of American flags fluttering above a prison yard speak to a protective kind of nationalism; the vague, frantic manner with which government officials brush away doubts remind us that a public desire for blood, post 9/11, superseded all sense of justice. “The Mauritanian” is notable, too, for how much of its perspective is actually granted to Salahi—who’s given depth thanks to a phenomenal, Bafta-nominated performance by Rahim.’—Clarisse Loughrey, The Independent.
‘The film’s power lies in its direct confrontation with the ideology that underpinned it all. Lingering shots of American flags fluttering above a prison yard speak to a protective kind of nationalism; the vague, frantic manner with which government officials brush away doubts remind us that a public desire for blood, post 9/11, superseded all sense of justice. “The Mauritanian” is notable, too, for how much of its perspective is actually granted to Salahi—who’s given depth thanks to a phenomenal, Bafta-nominated performance by Rahim.’—Clarisse Loughrey, The Independent.
