This film is part of Free
Out of the Darkness
All-too-topical: a thought-provoking Christian Aid film strongly making the moral case for welcoming refugees to Britain
Overview
All-too-topical: this thought-provoking Christian Aid film strongly makes the moral case for welcoming refugees to Britain. In this case, it’s Bangladesh - East Pakistan until the year before the film was produced - that is the poverty-stricken war-torn region families are fleeing. The style of the film is very much of its time - but its message still hits hard and still hurts.
While the religiosity - and the slightly pompous visual symbolism of certain sequences - won’t appeal to everyone, there’s no doubt that this is impressively hard-hitting stuff for a 1972 charity film. Connections between past imperialism, present upheavals, refugee camps, charity-begins-at-home complacency and actual violent racism are all plain enough. The credits list is worth a mention. The production company headed by Antony Barrier was one of the more adventurous producers of sponsored film in the early 1970s, while director Joe Mendoza was a stalwart of the sponsored documentary scene who had once worked under Humphrey Jennings. Edward Williams contributes a characteristically thoughtful score and actor Eric Porter delivers a poised commentary.
Related
The Bradford Godfather The Bradford Godfather
1976 49 mins Location: Bradford
Meet Mohamed Fazal Hussain, elder statesman and all-round Mr Fixit of Bradford's Muslim community, and a film mogul in the making...
The Referee The Referee
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1976 4 mins
Wrestling as a metaphor for race relations in this short aimed at Britain's South-Asian community
Asian Pub Landlord Asian Pub Landlord
News 1968 2 mins Location: Newbridge
Mr Dhanjal from Wolverhampton: custodian of one of the most vital positions in any community.
Oriental Atmosphere Oriental Atmosphere
Non-Fiction 1928 1 mins Silent Location: Woking
Britain's oldest mosque welcomes a vast crowd of worshippers, visitors, curious onlookers and the odd newsreel camera!
Gandhi in England British Screen News No. 335 Gandhi in England British Screen News No. 335
Non-Fiction 1931 2 mins Silent
Mahatma Gandhi's arrival in England for the second India Round Table Conference at St James's Palace
Sikh Matron Sikh Matron
Magazine and Review show 1985 8 mins Location: Kinver
From the temple to the hospital Kartar Singh is a leading practitioner of Sikhism.
On Falling - Exclusive Q&A On Falling - Exclusive Q&A
Inside Film 2025 30 mins
Writer-director Laura Carreira talks to Nia Childs about her debut feature, On Falling.
Layla - Exclusive Q&A Layla - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2025 27 mins
Writer, director and performer Amrou Al-Kadhi talks to Rico Johnson-Sinclair about their debut feature.
All We Imagine As Light - Exclusive Q&A All We Imagine As Light - Exclusive Q&A
Short interview 2025 28 mins
Payal Kapadia discusses her Cannes prize-winning and Bafta-nominated drama with Ashanti Omkar.
Khichdi Khichdi
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 16 mins
The interwoven stories of four best friends who reunite in the UK, thirty-five years after training together as nurses during their teens in Ferozepur, Punjab.
Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology
Documentary 2023 15 mins
A satirical take on the healthcare service announcements of the 1960s and 70s.
Every Moment Counts Every Moment Counts
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 9 mins
A short animation that offers a window into the world of children’s palliative care.