Each week, I’m sharing one of my all-time favourite documentaries here with you.
This week’s documentary is Laura Poitras’ The Oath.
In 2013, Edward Snowden – NSA whistleblower and one of my personal heroes – selected Laura Poitras as the documentary filmmaker to bring his world-shaking story to the world.
Snowden’s decision was based on Poitras’ past body of work, particularly her two previous documentaries on the world beyond September 11.
Last week I looked at the first of these films, My Country, My Country, which focuses on America’s attempt at bringing democracy to the Middle East.
The second film, The Oath, revolves around two ordinary men in extraordinary circumstances.
These two Yemeni brothers-in-law were drawn into al-Qaeda’s jihad against America, serving Osama bin Laden as driver and personal bodyguard.
The disillusioned Abu Jandal – “the father of death” – ultimately betrays his cause, providing the United States with information vital to their 2001 invasion of Afghanistan.
His brother-in-law, captured during that invasion, spends years in the limbo of Guantanamo Bay, before challenging its shadowy legal processes in the US Supreme Court.
By capturing these two remarkable lives unravelling, Poitras’ award-winning story examines some of the principles and beliefs behind an ideological conflict that continues to shape our world.
(Can’t see the trailer? Click here).
It is now 2.5 years since I began production on my own feature-length documentary, Sisters For Sale.
Sisters For Sale recounts the difficult and dangerous search for my kidnapped friends, and the devastating dilemmas they face.
It is 2 months since I stopped work on the film, to focus on raising the funds necessary for its completion.
You can help me share this incredible story with the world, and raise awareness of the global human trafficking crisis, by pre-ordering the film here.
(Can’t see the trailer? Click here).
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