A NEW film by British director Michael Winterbottom entitled The Road To Guantanamo has drawn an enthusiastic response at this year’s Berlin Film Festival.

The film tells the true story of three British Muslims who were held at the US prison camp for two years before being released without charge.

It got its world premiere on Wednesday, February 15, but drew cheers and a round of applause from an early press screening (which was reportedly packed to the rafters).

Winterbottom is no stranger to the festival circuit having regularly performed well at events such as Cannes and Sundance.

But the praise surrounding The Road To Guantanamo placed him firmly in contention for the prestigious Golden Bear award (which he previously won in 2003).

In spite of the subject matter – and suggestions that the film could emerge as this year’s Fahrenheit 9/11 – Winterbottom told journalists that the film was not anti-American in any way.

“We’re not trying to say Americans are bad… What we’re saying is that just the fact of Guantanamo’s existence is shocking and terrible and it shouldn’t be there,” he maintained.

The aim of the film was therefore to remind people that places like Guantanamo do still exist, even though they fly in the face of a supposedly democratic free world.

Much of Winterbottom’s film is based on interviews with Rhuhel Ahmed, Shafiq Rasul and Asif Iqbal, who were inmates at Guantanamo from 2002 to 2004.

The former two were also in Berlin to promote the film.

The Road To Guantanamo is attracting media attention for another reason as well, given that it is set to become the first simultaneous cinema, DVD and online release.

It is scheduled to be shown on Channel 4 on March 9 and released on DVD and in cinemas the following day as part of continuing efforts to reshape the film industry in the wake of increased threats to security.

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