Clash of Loyalties
Clash of Loyalties (Arabic: المسألة الكبرى, romanized: al-masʿāla al-kubrā, lit. 'The Great Question') is a 1983 Iraqi film focusing on the formation of Iraq out of Mesopotamia in the aftermath of the First World War.
| Al-Mas'ala Al-Kubra | |
|---|---|
The official poster of the movie | |
| Directed by | Mohamed Shukri Jameel |
| Written by | Ramadan Gatea Mozan, Lateif Jorephani and Mohamed Shukri Jameel. |
| Produced by | Iraqi Film and Theater Foundation |
| Starring | Oliver Reed John Barron James Bolam Helen Ryan Sami Abdul Hameed Qasim Al-Malak |
| Narrated by | Michael Hordern |
| Cinematography | Jack Hildyard and Majid Kamel |
| Edited by | Bill Blunden |
| Music by | Ron Goodwin |
| Distributed by | Iraqi Film Corporation |
Release date | 1983 |
Running time | 184 minutes |
| Country | Iraq |
| Languages | Arabic English |
| Budget | $24 mil |
The film was financed by Saddam Hussein, filmed in Iraq (mainly at the Baghdad Film Studios in Baghdad's Mansour neighbourhood and on location at the Tigris-Euphrates marshlands, Babylon and Kut) at the height of the Iran–Iraq War and starred Oliver Reed as Gerard Leachman, Marc Sinden as Captain Dawson and Helen Ryan as Gertrude Bell, with score by Ron Goodwin.
Investigative journalist James Montague, writing in the July 2014 issue of Esquire magazine, claimed that Marc Sinden spied for the British Government's Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) during the filming of Clash of Loyalties in Iraq, after being made "an offer he couldn't refuse, appealing to his duty and his pride in Queen and Country." In the article, Sinden admitted that it was true.
Both Arab and English versions of the film were produced.