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Architectural detail, interior, Alabama Theatre, Birmingham, Alabama

Through the Screen

Stories that
reach for Him

Closer looks are short reads. Each one pauses a film you know, asks what it is reaching for, and sets it beside what Jews, Christians and Muslims say about God. Then we tell you where to watch.

Start with a closer look →Watch a film together

Photo: Architectural detail, interior, Alabama Theatre, Birmingham, Alabama. Carol M. Highsmith. Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, Carol M. Highsmith Archive · Public domain

Featured closer look · 9 min · Film: Rogue OneOne with the ForceA blind man walks into battle repeating one short line. What is he holding on to?Read the closer look →

Closer looks

Pick a theme, or start anywhere. Each one ends with where to watch the film in the UK.

Showing 22.

Closer look · 5 minThe Infinity StonesPower you have to gather is not infinite. The Names describe the One who never had to gather anything.Film: Avengers: Infinity War

Closer look · 7 minHow Dune Built a ReligionPlanted prophecies, a merged scripture and a Hebrew road that shrinks: the machinery of belief inside Dune.Film: Dune

Closer look · 5 minLove across dimensionsInterstellar asks whether love crosses time and space. Three scriptures already say so.Film: Interstellar

Closer look · 7 minThe King Behind the MaskA leper king rules Jerusalem behind a silver mask. What does real kingship look like?Film: Kingdom of Heaven

Closer look · 5 minOne wordIn Arrival a word changes how you see time. Here is a word that changes how billions see God.Film: Arrival

Closer look · 6 minBeware the MessiahFrank Herbert wrote Dune as a warning. Every faith has one too: beware anyone who asks you to stop thinking.Film: Dune: Part Two

Closer look · 12 minNarnia: what if God came to another world?Lewis imagined God entering another world as a lion. What do the three faiths say about God and His creation?Film: The Chronicles of Narnia

Closer look · 3 minBig ideas on screenMultiverses, infinite power, time and judgement: the big ideas superhero films borrow, and where they came from.Film: Marvel, DC and anime

Closer look · 5 minTestimonyContact ends with a scientist asking the world to trust what she saw: the way every faith passes on what it was given.Film: Contact

Closer look · 3 minThe words Dune borrowedMahdi, Lisan al-Ghayb, Usul, jihad: what Dune's borrowed words mean to the people who use them.Film: Dune

Closer look · 4 minWhere were you?Malick's film opens with God's question to Job: where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?Film: The Tree of Life

Closer look · 8 minLive Long and ProsperThe Vulcan salute began in a synagogue. Star Trek tried to leave religion behind and kept finding its way back.Film: Star Trek

Closer look · 13 minFrankenstein: what does it mean to make a living thing?A maker who abandons what he made. Every faith answers: the true Creator never does.Film: Frankenstein (2025)

Closer look · 11 minHow do you film faith?Two films, one rule: keep your eyes on the people, not on the Prophet.Film: The Message and Kingdom of Heaven

Closer look · 11 minReading the stars: Moana and the real voyagersThe real voyagers crossed the Pacific by the stars. Scripture calls the stars a guide.Film: Moana

Closer look · 11 minThe last questionWhen every star has gone out, what remains? Asimov's answer, and the First and the Last.Film: Doctor Strange and Asimov's 'The Last Question'

Closer look · 12 minThe candlesticks and the castleTwo stolen lives: one answered with mercy, one with revenge. Which one turns back to God?Film: Les Misérables and The Count of Monte-Cristo

Closer look · 13 minAfter you've watched Dune: Part ThreeFive questions to talk through once the credits roll.Film: Dune: Part Three

Closer look · 12 min'Nothing is true'? Assassin's Creed and the real Assassins'Nothing is true, everything is permitted.' The real history, and why every faith says the opposite.Film: Assassin's Creed

Closer look · 5 minHow films have handled the ProphetWhy filmmakers kept the camera off his face, and what they showed instead.Film: The Message and Muhammad: The Messenger of God

Closer look · 11 minWho owns the Earth?A robot tidies a planet we abandoned. Shelley's broken statue asks who really owns it.Film: WALL·E

Closer look · 6 minWho gets to be on screen?Jews, Christians and Muslims on screen: who gets seen as a neighbour, and who as a type.Film: Ms. Marvel, We Are Lady Parts and more

For groups

Running a film night at home, at school, or with the mosque, church or synagogue down the road.

For groupsWatch togetherPick a film, gather your neighbours, and talk about what it stirred.

For groupsBefore you watchContent notes for every film, so you can choose well for your family or group.

The films

Every film we mention, with where to watch it in the UK. Where we have written a closer look, the film links to it.

Every film

Showing 55.

filmThe MessageThe classic telling of the birth of Islam, made so that the Prophet (peace be upon him) is never seen or heard, only felt through those around him.1976 · 178 · Moustapha Akkad (dir.); Filmco International · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

filmAr-Risalah (The Message, Arabic version)The same story filmed again, scene for scene, with an Arab cast: a lovely way to show the Arabic of Allah in its own voice.1976 · 206 · Moustapha Akkad (dir.); Arabic-language version · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

FreefilmBilal: A New Breed of HeroAn animated epic about a freed slave whose one word under torture was "One", the heart of who Allah is.2015 · 109 · Barajoun Entertainment (Dubai); dir. Khurram H. · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

filmLe Grand VoyageA French-Moroccan father and his secular son drive from France to Makkah, and slowly learn to see each other.2004 · 108 · Ismaël Ferroukhi (dir.); Pyramide Productions · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

unavailable UKfilmOf Gods and MenFrench monks in Algeria choose to stay beside their Muslim neighbours: a quiet film about faith, fear and love.2010 · 120 · Xavier Beauvois (dir.); Why Not Productions · No current UK listing (ScreenSearch, 7 Nov 2026)

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmKingdom of HeavenSaladin's mercy at Jerusalem and a knight who wants a kingdom of conscience: history at its best and its worst.2005 · 144 · Ridley Scott (dir.); Scott Free · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

FreefilmLife of PiA boy who loves God in three faiths, a tiger and an ocean: the film asks which story about God you'd rather believe.2012 · 127 · Ang Lee (dir.); Fox 2000 · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

filmThe InfidelA British Muslim dad finds out he was born Jewish: a warm London comedy about how close our families really are.2010 · 105 · Josh Appignanesi (dir.), David Baddiel (writer); · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmWadjdaA Riyadh girl wants a bike so much she enters a Qur'an recitation contest to win it.2012 · 98 · Haifaa al-Mansour (dir.); Razor Film · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

filmChildren of HeavenA brother and sister share one pair of shoes in Tehran: a perfect children's film about kindness and gratitude.1997 · 88 · Majid Majidi (dir.); Institute for the Intellect · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmFiddler on the RoofTevye talks to God like a friend while life and tradition shift under his feet.1971 · 181 · Norman Jewison (dir.); Mirisch Company · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

unavailable UKseriesShtiselA tender drama about a Haredi family in Jerusalem: love, grief and faith from the inside.2013 · 50 · Ori Elon and Yehonatan Indursky (creators); Dori · No current UK listing (ScreenSearch, 7 Nov 2026)

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

subscriptionseriesThe ChosenA Christian series about the people around Jesus (peace be upon him): Christian faith in its own words.2019 · 60 · Dallas Jenkins (creator); 5&2 Studios · Widely available to stream or buyShows prophets as people, as its makers chose; labelled here, never pictured by us.Artwork not shown: it pictures a prophet.

Where to watch in the UK ↗

The Prince of Egypt

subscriptionfilmThe Prince of EgyptMoses (peace be upon him), the burning bush and freedom, told with some of the most beautiful animation ever made.1998 · 99 · DreamWorks Animation; dirs. Brenda Chapman, Stev · Widely available to stream or buyShows prophets as people, as its makers chose; labelled here, never pictured by us.Artwork not shown: it pictures a prophet.

Where to watch in the UK ↗

The Ten Commandments

FreefilmThe Ten CommandmentsThe grand Hollywood telling of Moses (peace be upon him), the Exodus and the Law at Sinai.1956 · 220 · Cecil B. DeMille (dir.) · Widely available to stream or buyShows prophets as people, as its makers chose; labelled here, never pictured by us.Artwork not shown: it pictures a prophet.

Where to watch in the UK ↗

FreefilmNoahA dark, ambitious retelling of Noah (peace be upon him) that wrestles with judgement and mercy.2014 · 138 · Darren Aronofsky (dir.); Regency / Protozoa · Widely available to stream or buyShows prophets as people, as its makers chose; labelled here, never pictured by us.Artwork not shown: it pictures a prophet.

Where to watch in the UK ↗

Jesus of Nazareth

FreeseriesJesus of NazarethThe most loved screen life of Jesus (peace be upon him), still shown every Easter: Christian faith in its own words.1977 · 97 · Franco Zeffirelli (dir.); ITC / RAI · Widely available to stream or buyShows prophets as people, as its makers chose; labelled here, never pictured by us.Artwork not shown: it pictures a prophet.

Where to watch in the UK ↗

Muhammad: The Messenger of God

unavailable UKfilmMuhammad: The Messenger of GodListed for awareness only: an Iranian epic of the Prophet (peace be upon him)'s childhood.2015 · 177 · Majid Majidi (dir.); Noor Taban Film Industry · No current UK listing (ScreenSearch, 7 Nov 2026)Artwork not shown: it pictures a prophet.

Where to watch in the UK ↗

unavailable UKfilmMonsieur IbrahimAn old Muslim grocer in Paris quietly becomes a father to a lonely Jewish boy.2003 · 91 · François Dupeyron (dir.); ARP Sélection · No current UK listing (ScreenSearch, 7 Nov 2026)

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmChariots of FireA Christian Scot and a Jewish Londoner run for Britain, each for his own faith.1981 · 123 · Hugh Hudson (dir.); Enigma / Allied Stars · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

filmEast Is EastA Salford Pakistani-English family in 1971: big laughs, real love and a dad trying his best.1999 · 97 · Damien O'Donnell (dir.), Ayub Khan Din (writer); · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

FreeseriesWe Are Lady PartsA punk band of British Muslim women: funny, loud and full of faith on its own terms.2021 · Nida Manzoor (creator); Working Title Television · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

FreeseriesMan Like MobeenA Small Heath Muslim lad raising his sister: Birmingham comedy with a big heart.2017 · Guz Khan (creator); Tiger Aspect for BBC Three · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

FreeseriesRev.An inner-city London vicar keeps praying, keeps failing and keeps showing up.2010 · 30 · James Wood, Tom Hollander (creators); Big Talk P · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmIdaA young nun finds out she was born Jewish: a still, beautiful film about faith, memory and truth.2013 · 82 · Paweł Pawlikowski (dir.); Opus Film · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

FreefilmThe WayA grieving father walks the Camino de Santiago and finds friends, and maybe more.2010 · 128 · Emilio Estevez (dir.); Filmax / Elixir Films · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

filmLes MisérablesOne bishop's mercy to a thief changes a whole life, and that is the whole film.2012 · 158 · Tom Hooper (dir.); Working Title · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

subscriptionfilmThe Big SickA Pakistani-American comic, his Muslim family and the girl he loves, true and funny.2017 · 120 · Michael Showalter (dir.), Kumail Nanjiani and Em · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmAli's WeddingA cleric's son in Melbourne tells one lie and has to grow up fast: a sweet Muslim rom-com.2017 · 110 · Jeffrey Walker (dir.), Osamah Sami (writer); Mat · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmWhat's Love Got to Do with It?A London rom-com about assisted marriage, two families and what love really means.2023 · 109 · Shekhar Kapur (dir.), Jemima Khan (writer); Work · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

FreefilmArrangedAn Orthodox Jewish teacher and a Muslim teacher become best friends in a Brooklyn school.2007 · 90 · Diane Crespo, Stefan Schaefer (dirs.) · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmThe Two PopesTwo very different Catholic leaders argue, confess and become friends.2019 · 125 · Fernando Meirelles (dir.) · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

filmShadowlandsC.S. Lewis loses his wife and faces the hardest question about God and suffering.1993 · 131 · Richard Attenborough (dir.); Price Entertainment · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmPaddington 2"If we're kind and polite, the world will be right": a bear's mercy wins over a whole prison.2017 · 104 · Paul King (dir.); Heyday Films · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

filmBen-HurA prince wronged and enslaved learns that mercy is stronger than revenge.1959 · 212 · William Wyler (dir.); MGM · Widely available to stream or buyShows prophets as people, as its makers chose; labelled here, never pictured by us.Artwork not shown: it pictures a prophet.

Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmInterstellarTime bends, a father keeps his promise, and love reaches across the universe.2014 · 169 · Christopher Nolan (dir.); Syncopy · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

subscriptionfilmArrivalWhat if you could see your whole life at once, and still choose to love it?2016 · 116 · Denis Villeneuve (dir.); FilmNation / 21 Laps · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

filmContactA scientist sees something she can't prove: Carl Sagan's story about faith, evidence and awe.1997 · 150 · Robert Zemeckis (dir.), from Carl Sagan's novel · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

subscriptionfilm2001: A Space OdysseyFrom the first tool to the stars: cinema's great hymn to beginnings and what lies beyond.1968 · 149 · Stanley Kubrick (dir.) · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmThe Tree of LifeOpens with Job (peace be upon him)'s question, "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?", then shows creation itself.2011 · 139 · Terrence Malick (dir.) · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

subscriptionfilmGravityAlone above the Earth, a woman who has never prayed wishes someone had taught her how.2013 · 91 · Alfonso Cuarón (dir.) · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmDuneA desert world of prophecy and power that borrows heavily from Arabic and Islamic words.2021 · 155 · Denis Villeneuve (dir.); Legendary · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

subscriptionfilmDune: Part TwoA warning about people who make themselves into prophets, and those who believe them.2024 · 167 · Denis Villeneuve (dir.); Legendary · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

subscriptionfilmAvatarA living world where every creature is connected, and seeing someone is a kind of love.2009 · 162 · James Cameron (dir.); Lightstorm · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmAvengers: Infinity WarSix stones that control space, time, reality, power, mind and soul, and what it means that only God holds them all.2018 · 149 · Anthony and Joe Russo (dirs.); Marvel Studios · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

subscriptionfilmAvengers: EndgamePower used to undo harm costs everything: a blockbuster about sacrifice and what true power is.2019 · 181 · Anthony and Joe Russo (dirs.); Marvel Studios · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

subscriptionfilmSoulWhere does a soul come from, and what is a life for? Pixar asks it beautifully.2020 · 101 · Pete Docter (dir.); Pixar · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmThe MartianStranded on Mars, one man survives by reading the rules built into creation.2015 · 141 · Ridley Scott (dir.) · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

FreefilmThe FountainA man who can't accept death learns that only the Ever-Living lasts.2006 · 96 · Darren Aronofsky (dir.) · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmSunshineA crew flies toward the Sun and is overwhelmed by light: British sci-fi about awe.2007 · 108 · Danny Boyle (dir.), Alex Garland (writer); DNA F · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmWALL·EA little robot cares for a ruined Earth and teaches us to look after what we've been given.2008 · 98 · Andrew Stanton (dir.); Pixar · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗Read our take

FreefilmEverything Everywhere All at OnceIn an endless multiverse, the answer turns out to be simple: be kind.2022 · 140 · Daniels (dirs.); A24 · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmGroundhog DayEvery day repeats until a selfish man learns to turn back and do good.1993 · 101 · Harold Ramis (dir.) · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

FreefilmFirst ManA grieving man walks on the Moon and looks back at Earth in silence.2018 · 141 · Damien Chazelle (dir.) · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

subscriptionfilmIt's a Wonderful LifeA man who thinks his life is worthless is shown everything his kindness made possible.1946 · 131 · Frank Capra (dir.); Liberty Films · Widely available to stream or buy

Trailer ▶Where to watch in the UK ↗

Films that ask the big question

Our own films, closer looks at the films that asked these questions first, and where to watch.

They play right here. Stand-in NASA footage for now.

Watch more: Stories that reach for Him

9 films and talks, chosen for this page. They play here.

Dune, Islam & Religion
Let's Talk Religion · 28 min
Let's Talk Religion: Dune, Islam and religion.
Bishop Barron on “Doctor Strange”
Bishop Robert Barron · 7 min
Bishop Barron on “Arrival”
Bishop Robert Barron · 8 min
Bishop Barron on "Tree of Life" (SPOILERS)
Bishop Robert Barron · 10 min
Frankenstein: Plot, Character & Themes | BBC Teach
BBC Bitesize for Teachers · 3 min
How did Polynesian wayfinders navigate the Pacific Ocean? - Alan Tamayose and Shantell De Silva
TED-Ed · 6 min
TED-Ed: how Polynesian wayfinders navigated the Pacific, the real story behind Moana.
Moustapha Akkad, 'The Message' In His Own Words
TrancasFilms · 12 min
Moustapha Akkad, in his own words, on making The Message.
The Truth about Being a Jew in Hollywood | Michael Rapaport
Jewish Learning Institute · 31 min
Muslim Misrepresentation in Film | #MuslimsInFilm
Riz Ahmed · 13 min
Riz Ahmed on how Muslims are shown in film.
More films and talks on F-ILMWatch free