The Siege (1998 film)

The Siege is a 1998 American thriller film directed by Edward Zwick. The film is about a fictional situation in which terrorist cells have made several attacks on New York City. The film stars Denzel Washington, Annette Bening, Tony Shalhoub and Bruce Willis as the U.S. Army Major General William Devereaux.

Plot

Following the bombing of an American military installation in the Middle East (the film shows footage from the 1996 Khobar Towers bombing), the U.S. government orchestrates the capture of the mastermind believed to be behind the attack, Sheikh Ahmed bin Talal. In New York City FBI Special Agent Anthony Hubbard (Washington) and his Lebanese-American partner Frank Haddad (Shalhoub) are told of a hijacked bus, fully loaded with passengers and containing an explosive device. The bomb turns out to be a paint bomb and the terrorists manage to escape. The FBI receives demands to release the sheikh.

Hubbard eventually comes into conflict with CIA agent Elise Kraft (Bening). Hubbard takes a terrorist suspect into custody and arrests Kraft. Afterwards another terrorist threat is made and an MTA bus is bombed, though the children on-board are permitted to leave before the bus is destroyed. When the FBI captures a person of interest named Samir Nazhde he admits to signing the visa application of one of the suicide bombers in the course of signing many applications for student visas in his job as a lecturer. However, Kraft insists that Samir is not a terrorist and that his continued freedom is vital to the investigation.

The Siege (Dunmore novel)

The Siege is a historical novel by the English writer Helen Dunmore. It is set in Leningrad just before and during the Siege of Leningrad by German forces in World War II.

Plot

The Siege of Leningrad was one of the key events of the twentieth century. In 1941, Hitler’s armies encircled Leningrad, confidently expecting to crush any resistance and enter the city, but Leningrad held out, in spite of almost unbelievable suffering. This novel focuses on the Levin family and their friends, trapped inside the besieged city. It’s a brilliantly imagined novel about war as experienced by ordinary people, and a profoundly moving celebration of love, life and survival. Shortlisted for the Whitbread Novel Award and for the Orange Prize for Fiction The Siege of Leningrad was one of the key events of the twentieth century.

Reception

In The New York Times, Janice P. Nimura described the book as an "epic" and said that the language used was "elegantly, starkly beautiful". John Mulian, in the Guardian Book Club, focusing on the importance of the basic need of sustenance to stay alive in the early days of the siege, says that the book, an "agonizing read", has at its heart "the realism of the senses", particularly that of taste.

The Siege (Play)

The Siege is a Palestinian play developed and devised by The Freedom Theatre. It recounts the story of the 2002 Siege of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.

UK Tour

In May 2015, The Freedom Theatre embarked on its first ever tour of the UK. The Siege was the biggest touring production ever performed in Britain by a Palestinian theatre company.

The UK tour was organized by The Freedom Theatre UK Friends, a network of over 300 people in Britain who are engaged in the theatre’s activities. The Siege and its UK tour are supported by the EU, the British Council, Steps Beyond – European Cultural Foundation, Arts Council England and The Roddick Foundation. Other supporters include the playwright, Howard Brenton and film-maker, Ken Loach.

Funding by Arts Council England angered local Jewish community. Jewish actress Maureen Lipman joined pro-Israel groups including Zionist Federation in a protest outside the London premiere of The Siege at Battersea Arts Centre.

See also