The Mauritanian Parent Guide

After the horrors of 9/11, President George W Bush declared “Our war on terror begins with al Qaeda but it does not end there. It will not end until every terrorist group of global reach has been found, stopped, and defeated.”

Caught up in this massive worldwide manhunt is Mohamedou Ould Slahi (also spelled Salahi and played by Tahar Rahim), a German-trained engineer living in his West African homeland of Mauritania. Having fought against the Soviets in Afghanistan in the 1990s, Salahi has acquaintances amongst the mujahideen and jihadists, including a cousin in al Qaeda. When his cousin calls him on Osama bin Laden’s phone, Salahi’s fate is sealed. He’s picked up by local police, transferred to US black sites in Jordan and Afghanistan, and finally shipped off to Guantanamo Bay in Cuba where his life will intersect with two American lawyers.

Stuart Couch (Benedict Cumberbatch) is the military prosecutor chosen to lead the case against Slahi. The Marine is a straight arrow who lost a friend in 9/11 and is determined to secure justice for the family. But as he digs deeper into the case, he becomes increasingly uneasy over the way Slahi has been interrogated…

On the other side is Nancy Hollander, a fiercely determined attorney who specializes in international and human rights law. As a favor to a colleague, she takes on Slahi’s case (for free) and begins what will become years of trips to Cuba to meet with her client. In between her visits, he writes to her, explaining his background and his experiences at “Gitmo”.

The Mauritanian is a hard film to watch. There are horrendous scenes of torture, some of which are sexualized. Waterboarding is used, and Slahi is even taken out to sea where his head is pushed under the water. Watching American service personnel don Halloween masks and beat, kick, and abuse a detainee who has not even been able to defend himself in court is blood-chilling. Seeing an officer threaten to arrest a man’s mother and have her raped is nauseating. These scenes are a reminder of the words of the late Senator John McCain, who was tortured by the North Vietnamese: “The use of torture compromises that which most distinguishes us from our enemies, our belief that all people, even captured enemies, possess basic human rights.”

When you add plentiful profanity to the disturbing violence, The Mauritanian clearly isn’t a good choice for family movie night. It is, however, an instructive film for adults and mature teens, thanks to the complex issues it raises. Couch, despite his reservations about the interrogations, is convinced that Slahi is guilty. (“The Al-Qaeda Forrest Gump. Everywhere you look he’s there.”) Hollander is less concerned with Slahi’s guilt or innocence; her single-minded focus is on ensuring that Slahi receives due process. As both lawyers uncover the extent of torture perpetrated at Guantanamo, they are forced to grapple with the question at the heart of the film: Does one best defend the USA by upholding the principles of its constitution or by pursuing its enemies at all costs, even if that involves using methods that undermine the constitution itself?

Thankfully, the cast is up to the task of humanizing what could otherwise be abstract debates. Jodie Foster is perfectly cast as Nancy Hollander, wedding a no-nonsense practicality to her passion for the rule of law. And Benedict Cumberbatch ably portrays Couch’s dedication, although hearing a Southern accent come out of his mouth is a bit, shall we say, unsettling. But the real star of the show is Tahar Rahim, who offers an exceptional performance as Slahi, by turns bewildered, angry, frustrated, and terrified, yet somehow retaining a quiet dignity. His ability to absorb the horrors perpetrated against him and yet somehow forgive his guards is a powerful call to a world caught in cycles of hatred and revenge.