Review: Four Lions

The debut film from Brass Eye's Chris Morris had to be controversial and the material of Four Lions has definitely done that. The film looks at the world of suicide bombers but portrays most of them as bumbling brainwashed idiots or slightly psychotic guys who don't really understand the cause that they're fighting for. Riz Ahmed plays Omar the only one of a group of five extremists who actually knows what he's fighting for. The scenes featuring Omar's home life aren't often the most funny ones but are the ones with the most heart and poignancy. Friends Waj and Fessal aren't quite with it and therefore have been brainwashed by the only white member of the group and slightly psychotic Barry. It is Barry who possibly gets the most laughs in the film but at the same time is probably the most dillusional of the group. The film has plenty of laughs as the men struggle to even film a simple threatening video tape or transport explosives from one area to another. The final ache London Marathon is po men intned to blow up the London Marathon is possibly where the material gets a bit close to the bone as comparisons have been made to the 7/7 attacks however Morris and co-writers Sam Bain and Jesse Armstrong always manage to keep the material light enough and show the bombs not inflicting much damage to the general public. The film is incredibly funny so when something horrible happens, it makes you sit back and think in shock and that's what Morris is good for.

Riz Ahmed is brilliant in the main role he kind of holds things together and shows that suicide bombers can be normal level-headed men with families and steady jobs. The scene in which he tries to explain 'the cause' to his young son by using the analogy of the Lion King is strangely touching. Nigel Lindsay is incredibly scary as Barry as he interjects humour and full on hatred into his performance. But Kayvan Novak as Waj is the star of the show, he is a loveable simpleton not quite sure what he's doing but trying to please those around him, you'll certainly never think about Alton Towers quite the same again after his speech. British comedy regulars such as Julia Davis, Kevin Eldon and The Thick of It's Alex McQueen round off the cast displaying the general ignorance towards the Muslim faith and the incomptence of both the police and MPs.

While its not ever as funny as it thinks it is, this is still a brave film about a bunch of bumbling guys who just happen to want to blow themselves up. Morris is an accomplished director and has created a story that will stick with you long after you leave the cinema.