The War Within (Over the Mountains) (2005)
Average Rating: 6.6/10
Reviews Counted: 58
Fresh: 42 | Rotten: 16
The War Within attempts to get into the mind of a terrorist, and the result is believable and unsettling.
Average Rating: 6.1/10
Critic Reviews: 25
Fresh: 15 | Rotten: 10
The War Within attempts to get into the mind of a terrorist, and the result is believable and unsettling.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.6/5
User Ratings: 853
My Rating
Movie Info
The war on terror has an unusual effect on one man in this independent drama. Hassan (Ayad Akhtar) was an engineering student from Pakistan who, while studying in Paris, was one of several Pakistani students arrested by intelligence officers on suspicion of participating in international terrorist activities. Hassan was innocent of any crimes, but it took him hours to convince the authorities of this. By the time Hassan was released, his attitude about the West had begun to change, and in time
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Cast
-
Ayad Akhtar
Hassan -
Firdous Bamji
Sayeed -
Nandana Sen
Duri -
Sarita Choudhury
Farida -
John Ventimiglia
Gabe -
Varun Sriram
Ali -
Aasif Mandvi
Abdul -
Ajay Naidu
Naveed -
Mike McGlone
Mike O'Reilly -
Robert Martin Carroll
Agent #2 -
Jeff Ward
CIA Agent #2 -
Manny Siverio
Stunt Coordinator -
Per Melita
Terrorist -
David Connolly
Male Passenger #2 -
Roy Farfel
CIA Agent #1 -
David Bishins
Tall Agent -
Kamal Marayati
Imam Hamza -
Angel Desai
Reporter -
Charles Daniel Sandoval
Khalid -
Goli Samii
Female Passenger -
Samrat Chakrabarti
Chief Inspector Khan -
Anjeli Chapman
Rasheeda -
Wayman Ezell
Izzy -
James Rana
Saudi Man -
Chritopher Castelo
Steven -
Christine Commesso
News Anchorwoman -
John Zibell
Officer Carroll -
Joseph Ascolese
Cop #1 -
Douglas Paretti
Cop #2 -
Michael Balsely
Agent #1 -
Glenn Pike
CIA Agent #3 -
Vanessa Landino
Receptionist -
Deepti Gupta
Woman #1 -
Farah Bala
Woman #2 -
Deepa Purohit
Woman #3 -
Troy Hall
Male Passenger #1 -
Dianne Busch
Ticket Clerk -
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All Critics (63) | Top Critics (26) | Fresh (44) | Rotten (16) | DVD (7)
Akhtar, who also co-wrote the screenplay, is unable to convey Hassan's internal conflicts with any force.
Top CriticThe storyline in The War Within is far from fluid and, at times, overwrought. But it doesn't stop the film from capturing one's interest.
Very good.
Madly rational and persuasive political drama.
Well-made, well-informed and apparently well-meant psychological thriller.
Call it a portrait of a mild-mannered zealot, one that seeps under the skin and unsettles the nerves.
This is a film to unnerve any New Yorker, as it wanders city landmarks, like Grand Central Terminal, with destruction in mind...
Slow moving yet thoroughly engrossing...
The premise is indeed engaging, but the conversations are simplistic.
An affecting portrait of the torturous schism between radical Muslims and those who've embraced the West.
that most wonderful of cinema experiences, one that embraces complexity with both intelligence and an even hand. The DVD only deepens the appreciation for its accomplishment.
You glance at Hassan with sympathy, which is immediately neutralized by the assurance that this man would kill you without a thought in the name of his god. You pray to yours that he'll change his mind.
You just can't believe Hassan can see so much innocent humanity and still choose mass murder. And then Hassan quietly intones "God is great," and you realize he can no longer see them at all.
Castelo, working with a meager budget and few familiar faces..., adroitly turns Hassan's moral and religious struggle into a tension-building experience.
...a challenging film that builds to a riveting climax and is certain to spark discussion across partisan lines.
The very model of the self-hating liberal consciousness; no matter his better intentions, he finds himself blaming the victim for the crime.
Taut and suspenseful even when it's just being introspective.
It's thanks to Akhtar's standout performance that The War Within is as electrifying as it is.
Almost everything that happens feels true and horrifying, and yet it's done so well you can't look away.
Audience Reviews for The War Within (Over the Mountains)
Super Reviewer
I really liked the late night conversation between Hassan and his best friends son where he tries to, in basic terms, explain what is happening overseas to his 'brothers and sisters'. "What would you do if your neighbors decided they wanted to take your house and force you to move to the backyard? And, they had the police on their side. And then, what would happen if they found there was oil under the backyard and they wanted that too so you had to leave and they had the mayor on their side? What would you do?" Eventually, the little boy says, 'Fight'.
'Your government takes actions of which its people are unaware. But ignorance is not innocence.'
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[font=Century Gothic][/font]
[font=Century Gothic]Three years later, Hassan is a changed man. He is smuggled into the United States, as part of a terrorist cell, targeting New York City landmarks. Hassan is assigned Grand Central Station.[/font]
[font=Century Gothic][/font]
[font=Century Gothic][/font]
[font=Century Gothic]"The War Within" is a quietly chilling, subtle and stunning movie that takes a disparaging view of the War on Terror while offering no easy answers. Overall, the movie is sympathetic for the vast majority of Muslims who are caught in the middle between the government that automatically suspects them of violent activities and terrorists who pervert their religion for their own nefarious goals. Remember, the surest way to radicalize somebody is to arrest, torture and then place them in the company of fanatics. [/font]