British film satire on suicide bombers launched in US

Chris Morris, a humorist whose past TV programs have triggered controversy, has made a film about a group of British suicide bombers.

Four Lions, which was partially funded by Film4, was screened last night at the Sundance film festival in Utah. The film culminates in scenes in which four young suicide bombers dressed in bird costumes question their motives at the last minute, causing chaos at the London marathon.

Morris is known to have worked on little else over the last five years, during which he rejected the opportunity to pursue other TV and film projects. The 44-year-old satirist does not appear in the film, but provides a voiceover at its conclusion.

“Chris has spent an incredible amount of time immersing himself in Islam, terror and counter-terror,” a friend said. “He has toured Britain and met dozens of radicals, ex-radicals, academics, journalists and British Asians. He sat in on high-profile terror trials for weeks, read the key texts and recent books, has gone to innumerable ­public meetings, met community groups, and made it his business to educate himself on the nature of fundamentalism.”

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