(T)error explained

(T)error
Director:Lyric R. Cabral
David Felix Sutcliffe
Producer:Christopher St. John
Writers:-->
Starring:Khalifah Al-Akili and Saeed Torres
Narrators:-->
Music:Robert Miller
Production Companies:-->
Distributors:-->
Runtime:84 minutes
Country:United States
Language:English

(T)error – stylized as (T)ERROR – is a 2015 American documentary film directed by Lyric R. Cabral and David Felix Sutcliffe. The film follows undercover FBI informant Saeed "Shariff" Torres as he engages in a sting operation targeting a Muslim man named Khalifah Ali Al-Akili as well as Tarik Shah.[1] The film won the Special Jury Award for Breakout First Feature at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, where it premiered.[2] [3]

It is the first documentary to follow an active FBI case while in progress.[4] It is the first film for Cabral and the second for Sutcliffe.[5] Sutcliffe said the film's intention was to show informants and their targets, and focus on the "decisions, tactics and objectives of counterterrorism cases."[6]

The film aired on US television on the PBS series Independent Lens. The film was re-titled FBI Undercover when broadcast in the UK by the BBC as part of their Storyville TV series.[7]

The story was also retold on This American Life.[8]

Background

Co-director Cabral was a student living in Harlem when her downstairs neighbor of four years, Saeed Torres, disappeared in May 2005. Cabral's investigation into his disappearance eventually became the subject of her film.[9] Shortly before Torres' disappearance, Sutcliffe and Cabral met at an afterschool arts program, where one of their students, Adama Bah, a 16-year-old Muslim teenage girl was arrested by the FBI and accused of being a "potential" suicide bomber.[10] Her arrest triggered a growing interest for both Cabral and Sutcliffe in the FBI's counterterrorism tactics, and an increasing awareness of the central role of informants in the majority of domestic terror plots.

Reception

Critical reception

The film was received positively by critics. It received a 91% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 33 reviews.[11] It also received a score of 73 (generally favorable) on Metacritic, based on 12 reviews.[12] The consensus according to Rotten Tomatoes being "(T)ERROR should dishearten and disturb viewers concerned with the erosion of American civil rights – and it doesn't even hit its targets as hard as it could.".

Writing for RogerEbert.com, film critic Brian Tallerico, who gave the documentary three and a half stars out of four, says that the film is a "fascinating piece of work that approaches CITIZENFOUR in its deconstruction of governmental failure and the systems underneath the war on terror that are not only failing to keep us safe but impacting the entire world political scene."[13]

Awards and nominations

Won
Nominated

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Extended interview with Khalifah al-Akili from Federal Prison; Says FBI Tried to Entrap Him (WEB EXCLUSIVE). 22 December 2015. Democracy Now. 20 April 2015.
  2. News: Chang . Justin . Here are the 2015 Sundance Film Fest winners . 22 December 2015 . 31 January 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150205083904/http://www.reviewjournal.com/entertainment/movies/here-are-2015-sundance-film-fest-winners . 5 February 2015 . live .
  3. News: Pilgrim. Sophie. US filmmakers unveil FBI tactics to snare Muslims. 26 April 2015. France 24. 25 April 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150425155726/http://www.france24.com/en/20150424-usa-film-unveil-fbi-tactics-snare-muslims-informant-terror/. 2015-04-25. dead.
  4. News: Perez. Rodrigo. Hot Docs Review: FBI Informant Tale (T)error Is One Of The Most Riveting Documentaries Of The Year. 22 December 2015. The Playlist. Indiewire. 30 April 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20151218230453/http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/hot-docs-review-fbi-informant-tale-t-error-is-one-of-the-most-riveting-documentaries-of-the-year-20150430. 2015-12-18. dead.
  5. News: Moylan. Brian. Sundance 2015 review: (T)ERROR – is entrapment always this boring?. 22 December 2015. The Guardian. 28 January 2015.
  6. News: Moynihan. Colin. '(T)error' Focuses on Informant and Piques F.B.I.'s Interest. 22 December 2015. The New York Times. 2 September 2015.
  7. News: Newall. Sally. Storyville: FBI Undercover, BBC4 - TV review: There is no perfect solution in these difficult times. https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/reviews/storyville-fbi-undercover-bbc4-tv-review-there-is-no-perfect-solution-in-these-difficult-times-a6755016.html . 2022-05-01 . subscription . live. 22 December 2015. The Independent. 30 November 2015.
  8. Web site: This American Life Episode 566: Act Two ("The Lyin' Kings") transcript. This American Life. 11 September 2015 . February 22, 2016.
  9. Web site: Bramowitz. Julie. Sundance Doc (T)ERROR Blows the Lid Off FBI Informants. Vogue. 4 February 2015.
  10. News: Elation in Harlem as Girl Held in Terror Inquiry Is Released. The New York Times. 2005-05-07. 2015-11-04. 0362-4331. Nina. Bernstein.
  11. Web site: (T)ERROR . Rotten Tomatoes . 22 February 2016.
  12. Web site: (T)error . . 20 December 2015.
  13. News: (T)ERROR. 22 December 2015. RogerEbert.com. 7 October 2015.
  14. Web site: THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF TELEVISION ARTS AND SCIENCES ANNOUNCES WINNERS AT THE 38th ANNUAL NEWS & DOCUMENTARY EMMY AWARDS. Cdn.emmyonline.org. 15 March 2022. 8 November 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211108054033/http://cdn.emmyonline.org/news_38th_winners_v02.pdf. dead.

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