Too many Westerners criticise Islam while lacking a basic knowledge of it; this long (two hours) but rewarding primer is full of revelations. It reports what the Qur'an actually says about killing to defend the faith, and about women, and explains how Sharia operates, the differences between Sunni and Shia, and the recent influence of Saudi Wahhabism. It also reminds us that the Qur'an sanctifies Mary and Jesus, and that its emphasis on intellectual enquiry put medieval Muslim scholars ahead of ours. (Not to mention architects, who are lauded daily (7.50pm C4) as part of The Seven Wonders of the Muslim World.) Sticking to analysing the text would have made the film shorter, and perhaps better: the sections on "Islamic" terrorists skate over complex conflicts, giving succour to extremists on both sides. But the discovery that the violent and the virtuous can find support in the Qur'an is central to a portrait of a religion that, like so many others, is built on an arcane, equivocal text. RT reviewer - Jack Seale
Channel 4 : (120 mins)
