Films they don’t want you to see
Sunday, 12 October 2008, 14:00 - 20:00
The Commonplace, 23-25 Wharf St, LS2 7EQ www.thecommonplace.org.uk

Film is a medium that has been used to document the truth and often occurrences that the state may not want you to see. We have selected a few films that have made the state feel uncomfortable. The police have tried to prevent the screening of both On the Verge and also Injustice in this country. Persepolis has only been shown in limited settings in Iran with a number of scenes censored and it was dropped from the Bangkok Film Festival following discussions between the Thai and Iranian governments. Come see what all the fuss is about...



2–3.30pm ON THE VERGE 90 min

The film the police tried to ban!
This 90 minute film tells the story of the four year campaign in Brighton to close down EDO-MBM, a local factory producing weapons parts for the US weapons corporation EDO Corp – and used in Iraq, Palestine, Afghanistan and elsewhere. Using activist, police and CCTV footage, as well as interviews with those involved, it is the story of a resilient and successful direct action in the face of the police and private security rotecting the company.



4-5.40pm INJUSTICE 98 min

In 1969 David Oluwale became the first black person to die in police custody in Britain . Many others have died since then. None of the police officers involved have been convicted of these deaths. In this documentary, the families of these victims ask "Why not?"This is a blow by blow account of the relentless struggles of the families as they find out how they lost their loved ones in extremely violent deaths at the hands of police officers. Each family is met with a wall of official secrecy and the film documents how they unite and challenge this together. The documentary uses powerful exclusive footage filmed over a five year period and witnesses the families pain and anger at the killings. It documents the fight to retrieve the bodies for burial, the mockery of police self-investigation and the collusion of the legal system in the deaths.The film asks why an accused killer in a police uniform is not judged by the same standards as the rest of society. I N J U S T I C E documents the horrific loss of life at the hands of the state and it's attempts to cover up these killings. The British police have been responsible for hundreds of deaths and have walked free.



6-7.40pm PERSEPOLIS 96 min

In 1970s Iran , Marjane 'Marji' Statrapi watches events through her young eyes and her idealistic family of a long dream being fulfilled of the hated Shah's defeat in the Iranian Revolution of 1979. However as Marji grows up, she witnesses first hand how the new Iran, now ruled by Islamic fundamentalists, has become a repressive tyranny on its own. With Marji dangerously refusing to remain silent at this injustice, her parents send her abroad to Vienna to study for a better life. However, this change proves an equally difficult trial with the young woman finding herself in a different culture loaded with abrasive characters and profound disappointments that deeply trouble her. Even when she returns home, Marji finds that both she and homeland have changed too much and the young woman and her loving family must decide where she truly belongs.


Cakes, savoury snacks and of course popcorn will be served!