178. Jihad Jane; movie review

JIHAD JANE
Cert 15
94 mins
BBFC advice: Contains images of real violence and dead bodies, references to child sexual abuse

When the news breaks of terrorists in our midst, it tends to send heartbeats racing.
If Jihad Jane and her co-conspirator, who became briefly known as Jihad Jamie, are typical we should be rolling around laughing rather than cowering in our homes.
As Ciaran Cassidy's documentary shows, the media hysteria surrounding the two women was wildly misplaced.
Indeed, if they were of any danger at all, it was more likely to be themselves than the American people.
Cassidy follows the story of Colleen LaRose whose unfulfilled life saw her spend so much time on her computer that she eventually researched radical Islam and then become immersed in forums about it.
But, hold on, these were open discussion pages - not ones hidden away on the dark web.
So, for all to see, she converted and then pledged herself to do the work of those who claimed to be in charge of terrorist activity.
Inevitably, it turns out that she wasn't even messaging a key player, didn't go through with a terrorist crime and yet was jailed for a decade.
The documentary examines the bizarre story of LaRose and fellow American Jamie Paulin-Ramirez who also converted to Islam and had a similar desperate back story.
Both women were, on the face of it, willing participants in a plot to murder Lars Vilks, a Swedish artist who was accused by some Muslims accused of blasphemy.
Vilks, a strange figure himself, is also interviewed as are the two women, those who have personal links with them and those who investigated them.
Jihad Jane benefits hugely from almost all participants playing ball.
Indeed, their high-level co-operation and the wacky story that unfolds gives it a feel of a mock-umentary rather than the real thing. Indeed, it is mind-boggling that it isn't.
However, rather than laugh too loud, I felt dissatisfied by its ending which posed a host of unanswered questions.
That is more the fault of the American establishment than its director.

Reasons to watch: A story so bizarre it could only be true
Reasons to avoid: Leaves many unanswered questions

Laughs: One
Jumps: None
Vomit: None
Nudity: None
Overall rating: 7/10

Did you know? From 2010 to 2019, 20 per cent of extremist-related killings in the United States were caused by someone affiliated with Islamist extremism and more than three-quarters of extremist-related killings were carried out by someone affiliated with right-wing extremism.

The final word. Ciaran Cassidy: “It’s only really when (we) started digging into the story that we’re starting to get an insight into how quickly the whole plot had fallen apart. But that’s not the impression you got when you watched the news.” The Journal.ie

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