Customer Reviews

Inside Islam (History Channel)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

"Inside Islam" is a 2002 documentary that provides a good introduction to Islam. I've used excerpts from it in teaching world religions to undergraduates and high school students. Topics include Islam's connections with Judaism and Christianity, the life of Muhammad, the Five Pillars of Islam (the profession of faith, prayer, charity, fasting during Ramadan, and the pilgrimage to Mecca), the history of Islam, women in Islam, European colonialism, Islamism, the Nation of Islam, and jihad.

While this documentary may not provide an entirely balanced picture of Islam (leaning heavily toward the positive), if you're looking to get a basic literacy in Islam--to understand what the central practices are, who Muhammad is, and a bit of the history of Islam--I'd highly recommend this video.

Some other good videos on Islam:
- Muslims (Frontline);
- The Message, a movie about the life of Muhammad;
- Inside Mecca (National Geographic);
- Secrets of the Koran (History Channel);
- Islamic Mysticism: The Sufi Way, narrated by Huston Smith.

And a good, readable introduction to Islam is Reza Aslan's No god but God.

There have been a lot of bad tapes on Islam since 9/11/01. This is a GOOD one. It covers Muhammad's revelation, the growth of the religion, and cultural matters that puzzle non-Muslims. There is a touch of anti-Western bias here and there in the narration, but all in all it's a very welcome, balanced, and spiritual guide.

I really enjoyed this film.
I see that the other reviewers think it was biased. The point of the film was to introduce islam to people who don't know anything about it. I thought it was a wonderful film. It was not biased. The things ommitted had cause to be left out, because not all muslims share in the beliefs(Such as death penalty, that is not in the Quran!!!). The complexities can not be explained in one single film. I thought it was a very nice introduction, and quite accurate. I have been studying a lot on Islam and I definitely recommend this DVD. Very informative and captivating speakers! Beautiful footage!

a documentary covering the basic 5 pillars of islam. this video or dvd is perfect for anyone who wishes to get a quick overview of islam, without delving too heavily into a long and drawn out history lesson. a simple feature covering the basics of islam and the practice and following of muslims, who muhammad was, and how the religion follows many of the same beleifs of the bible, and prophets therein.

"Inside Islam" was produced within a year of the 9/11 attacks, with the goal of educating Americans about this often misunderstood faith. In some ways, I'd say it was successful, but in others, it fell short.

It does explain the origins of Islam and the story of the prophet Muhammad, who founded the religion and guided it in its early days. The viewer also learns about the "Five Pillars of Islam," the split between Shia and Sunni, some of the golden ages enjoyed by Islamic empires, and some of the contributions those societies gave to the world. (And for those viewers who might have been wondering, there is even a brief explanation of the American group The Nation of Islam and its most famous disciple, Malcom X.) With roughly 1400 years of Islamic history, there is a lot to cover in 100 minutes, so I would say the producers did a decent job in the time alotted.

On the other hand, I felt some areas would have benefitted from more analysis. Altough some time was spent on the Shia/Sunni split, it could have been explored in more detail, both in the 7th century and the realities of that split today. Even more importantly, the topic of Islam's link to terrorism was woefully under-reported. Although it was stressed that Islamic doctrine does not advocate violence and forbids suicide (defied by today's suicide bombers), there was not enough of a discussion about why these terrorist factions exist. Why is Al Qaeda targeting the west? What policies have western governments pursued that have angered them? Etc. etc. This was a serious missed opportunity that would have helped Americans to understand what is happening in the larger world beyond our shores.

Three stars. Helps the viewer understand Islam but falls short of explaining how it is used by terrorists to justify their actions.

A great source of introductory knowledge for those who really want to understand what Islam really is; not what many of us perceive it to be in the West.

This is a good documentary and present islam in the right perspective. I can say this because i am a muslim and I believe in what is shown in this film.

For those who think this is biased, when you compare Islam, compare it to christianity as followed by 1st generation christians or Judaism as followed by first few generations of jews after Mosses. Islam is a religion and Quran just says what God (Allah) wants from us just like the bible or Torah does. To follow it or not is entirely our decision. For example most muslim countries doesn't follow sharia. Most muslim countries are dictatorships or kingships, both are unislamic.

In most cases people develop bad opinion about islam because they compare what is in quran to US constitution rather than the original bible. To add to this people assume the atrocities prevalent in muslim majority countries is because Quran says so, you will be surprised by reality. Just read a translation of quran from a good muslim scholar, not the ones written by those who oppose Islam. The one by Md Marmaduke Pickthall is the best in english.

Islam is still followed so strictly by such a huge majority of humans even in the wake of such a huge opposition, should make people think, it must have something good in it, make an honest attempt to know it, maybe you are missing something that is best thing you can have.

This is a good film and I recommend people to watch it to get a first hand knowledge of Islam.

This documentary has all the bad qualities of a typical History Channel production -- the same reenactment clips over and over, skipping interesting points, glib overview. Get the PBS version instead.Empires - Islam: Empire of Faith

I would recommend this video for anyone who would like to understand Islam. I actually watched this video while I was deployed to Iraq and vetted it through quite a few Iraqis. I let a few watch it and they had nothing but good things to say about it. I also shared waht I learned with other Iraqis and there were very impressed with what I learned from this video. This video is also very unbiased, a huge plus. This video also shows a great respect for the religion becaus it never shows or depicts the Prophet Mohammed in any way (it is forbidden in Islam to show any images of Muhammed). This video will take you on a journey from the very beginnings of Islam to today. This video is a worthwhile investment.

This documentary does well to describe the history and tradition of the religion of Islam.
A warning to those that purchase this video, if you are looking for information that has the purpose of just describing the religion and not having any political undertone, this documentary does poorly. There are three short segments in the video where a narrator takes time to remind the viewer of the events of September 11th.
If I was purchasing a documentary on Christianity, I would not have the slightest interest in a subjective opinion of the personal faith and motivation behind certain groups or persons that claim Christianity as their religion(the 2006 president of the US for example).
The video does offer a lot of useful information regarding the religion though, despite a small smudge here and there.