Genre: Documentary/Drama
Director: Michael Winterbottom and Mat Whitecross
Starring: Ewan Bailey, Riz Ahmed
RunTime: 1 hr 35 mins
Released By: GV
Rating: NC-16

Watch the trailer

Opening Day: 22 June 2006

Synopsis :

The Road to Guantánamo focuses on the Tipton Three, a trio of British Muslims who were held in Guantanamo Bay for two years until they were released without charge.

Movie Review:


Some movies age well, others don’t. “The Road to Guantanamo” was highly impressive on first viewing – a docu-drama of raw grit and understated honesty that is refreshing in its handling of potentially trite content, yet I can’t help but wonder, can this purity withstand the trial of age or will the movie turn out to be manipulative after multiple viewings? There is no doubting the truth of what we see but the film is flawed in such a way that makes it ever so slightly dubious. That aside, this is an exceptional documentary that will provoke you and stay with you – even now, images from the film unrelentingly bombard my mind’s eye. Not because it’s an aggressive tirade (the film is partisan but stops short of bias) – the astonishing story is simply too remarkable to forget.

The basis of “The Road to Guantanamo” is the well-documented story of the Tipton Three, a group of three British Muslims (Asif, Ruhal and Shafiq) who were held in Guantanamo Bay for two years until they were released without charge in 2004. The group of childhood friends from the Midlands town of Tipton had traveled to Pakistan in September 2001 for Asif’s arranged wedding and while there decided to cross the border to Afghanistan. The specific reasons for their trip are vaguely revealed but the general impression is these boys were simply caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. As the Taliban rapidly lose control to the Northern Alliance, the boys are rounded up as prisoners alongside hundreds of other seeming innocents. They are transported and held under inhumane conditions, where the goal is hardly to transport or hold but to conveniently reduce the number of prisoners alive either by piling them in ill-ventilated container trucks where hundreds suffocate or starving them with minimal food. The trio’s terrible ordeal continues as we witness them getting shuffled around in a series of confusing scenes before they’re shipped to Cuba by the American troops, classified as criminals associated with the Taliban.

The second and by far more superior half of the film concentrates on the three men’s ordeal at Camp X-Ray in Guantanamo Bay, where they suffer unspeakable indignities under the American troops guarding them. They are forced to kneel in the scorching sun and to sleep in the stinging wind then woken every hour for a head-count – and these are just the tip of the iceberg. The sublime execution of the story induces a disturbing satisfaction in the viewer: a perplexing mixture of horror and excitement at the unraveling scenes, then, the intense guilt of a voyeur who sits lamely, shame-faced for looking, but continues riveted all the same. This is one of those powerful films that assails you with information and commands your attention, but unlike the volatile nature of most political films, “The Road to Guantanamo” remarkably maintains an even composure throughout. Simply said, the assailing and commanding are all done gently, but in no way lack oomph.

Indeed the film, to its immense credit, has tackled an important issue (the US government’s insistence on detaining without trial) without the pomp and circumstance of a high-budget blockbuster, neither is it the self-righteous guilt-trip I was afraid it might be. Directors Michael Winterbottom and Mat Whitecross wisely allow the extraordinary story to take over the production entirely; their only ostensible interference is the use of footage from actual interviews conducted with the trio. These are interspersed with reenactments of their harrowing account, acted out by first-time actors who lend an organic tension to the film. But the most outstanding part of the film is its sardonic humour; moments where the protagonists cheekily reveal hints of personality are charming, and make this hard-hitting film that much easier to enjoy.

There seems to be a conscious effort to contain the explosive story and keep it grounded. Most of this works as the torture scenes work to greater effect when they are not belaboured. Yet parts of this excellent film feel choked, such as the ones of the men feebly defending themselves during their ridiculous interrogations. In addition there is the double-edged sword of using amateur actors: their performances score in realism but lack the texture of pent-up desperation and mental despair. My biggest concern remains with the first half -the weaker link- where details are murky and the editing untidy.

Perhaps a second viewing will uncover details that trounce these complaints – if so, “The Road to Guantanamo” would have aged well, turning a good movie into a great one. Meanwhile, there is no denying that, in a movie that packs some nasty punches, its first blow delivers.

Movie Rating:

(One of the most revealing movies I’ve seen, and a lesson in how to make a solid political movie without resorting to ostentatious diatribes)

Review by Angeline Chui