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Revision as of 15:27, 4 January 2008 by Matt57 (talk | contribs) (→External links: add back movie trailer clip)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff) 2007 film| Islam: What the West Needs to Know | |
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| File:Islam What the West Needs to Know - Front Cover.gifFront Cover | |
| Directed by | Gregory M. Davis, Bryan Daly |
| Produced by | Quixotic Media |
| Starring | Robert Spencer, Walid Shoebat, Bat Yeor, Serge Trifkovic, Abdullah Al-Araby |
| Release dates | July 17, 2007 |
| Running time | 98 minutes |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
Islam: What the West Needs to Know is a documentary film produced by Quixotic Media. The film is an examination of Islam, featuring discussions using passages from religious texts. The film includes commentaries by Robert Spencer, Serge Trifkovic, Bat Ye'or, Abdullah Al-Araby, and Walid Shoebat.
The film premiered at the American Film Renaissance Festival in Hollywood on January 15, 2006 and had a limited theatrical release in summer 2006 in Chicago, Washington DC, and Atlanta.
Synopsis
Islam: What the West Needs to Know argues that Islam is a violent religion bent on world domination. The documentary uses passages from the canonical texts of Islam as its source material. It is presented in six parts:
- 1. There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is his Prophet: In the first part, various commentators argue that Islamic violence stems from the teachings and examples of Muhammad and that the Qur'an prescribes and sanctions violence against non-Muslims.
- 2. The Struggle: In the second part, Walid Shoebat defines the word "Jihad" to mean the struggle to impose Allah's will over the earth, resulting in holy war against the non-Muslim world in order to bring it under the rule of Islam.
- 3. Expansion: In the third part, Bat Ye'or describes the expansion of Islam through conquest and presents historical evidence of enslavement and massacres of Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians and Hindus by Muslim invaders.
- 4. War is Deceit: In the fourth part, Robert Spencer and Serge Trifkovic discuss the Islamic principle of Taqiyya, Islamic dissimulation, which, the lecturers argue, enjoins Muslims to deceive non-Muslims in order to advance the cause of Islam.
- 5. More than a Religion: In the fifth part, the documentary asserts that "Islamic law governs every aspect of religious, political, and personal action, which amounts to a form of totalitarianism that is divinely enjoined to dominate the world, analogous in many ways to Communism".
- 6. The House of War: The final part covers the division of the world into Dar al-Islam ("the house of Islam" or "the house of peace"), the land governed by the Islamic law, and Dar al-Harb ("the house of war"), the land of non-Muslims. According to the film, Muslims are enjoined to bring the Dar al-Harb under the control of Islam. The film argues, "Muslims in Western nations are called to subvert the secular regimes in which they now live in accordance with Allah's command."
Reviews
Some have considered the film to be important, with the Gwinnett Daily Post describing its message as "mind-blowing". Other reviewers criticised the film as being inaccurate, simplistic and biased and even propagandist against Islam. It has also been criticized as being boring.
A film review by The Charlotte Observer which does not accept or reject the film's thesis is summarized into the back cover of the video wrapping with the phrase, "if their central thesis is true -- and it's worth considering -- then this is the most horrific film of the 21st century so far."
See also
Other similar documentaries
References
- 'About the project' (whatthewestneedstoknow.com)
- ^ 'Hot-button film should provoke discussions now' by Lawrence Toppman, The Charlotte Observer
- MOVIE mojo - Islam Film opening today - Atlanta-Journal Constitution. 12 July, 2006
- Message of 'Islam' bogged down by boring delivery - Gwinnett Daily Post. 07 July, 2006
- Dann Gire, "War and terrorism: What more could moviegoers want?", Chicago Daily Herald, 7 July 2006, p. 37.
- "Islam: What the West Needs to Know" **1/2 - Chicago Sun-Times. 07 July, 2006
- ^ 'Movie reviews: 'The War Tapes' and 'Islam: What the West Needs to Know' by Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune
- Message of 'Islam' bogged down by boring delivery - Gwinnett Daily Post. 07 July, 2006
External links
- Official movie website | Watch movie trailer
- Islam: What the West Needs to Know at IMDb
- C-span program with clips from the Islam: What the West Needs to Know
- Discussion with Robert Spencer, Walid Shoebat, and Serge Trifkovic about the movie.
- American Film Renaissance Festival