of the film. Winterbottom refuses to ask the bleeding obvious. His unquestioning faith in his 'cast' is bewildering. The portrayal of human rights abuses at Guantanamo Bay highlighted widespread criticism of the prison and detention already made by activist organisations and politicians. Amnesty International had referred to the prison as "the gulag of our times". World leaders have criticised the US for maintaining the prison; German Chancellor Angela Merkel said, "An institution like Guantánamo in its present form cannot and must not exist in the long term". Actors detained Four of the actors in the film were detained for about an hour by police at London Luton Airport after returning from the film's premiere in Berlin. Riz Ahmed stated that during questioning, police asked him whether he had become an actor to further the Muslim struggle, questioned him on his views of the Iraq War, verbally abused him, and denied access to his phone. One of the interrogators tried to recruit him as an informant. A spokesperson for Bedfordshire Police stated that none of the men were arrested, but the Terrorism Act allows the police to "stop and examine people if something happens that might be suspicious." She did not clarify what the actors had done to arouse suspicion. References External links 2006 films 2006 drama films Documentary films about torture Films directed by Michael Winterbottom Films directed by Mat Whitecross British docudrama films Prisoner of war films Films about miscarriage of justice Films set in Pakistan Guantanamo Bay detention camp War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) films British drama films 2000s English-language films 2000s British films 2006 directorial debut films