Fire in Babylon

It was a privilege to attend the World Premiere of this new documentary at the 2010 London Film Festival. Director Stevan Riley has made an exhilarating piece that describes the events which led to the West Indies cricket team rising from also-rans in the early 1970s to a fearsome, all-conquering force by end of the decade, and at the same time becoming cultural icons who inspired a generation of black people still struggling to emerge from a history of slavery and oppression.

The story is told entirely from the West Indians' point of view, and in their own words - this is not so much a discussion as a celebration of an inarguably glorious period of sporting history. The list of contributors is a cricketing hall-of-fame roll call: Richards, Lloyd, Holding, Roberts, Greenidge, Haynes, Garner and more are joined by other significant names from Caribbean culture. All are hugely entertaining orators who could easily have kept this relatively short production going for another 3 hours.

This is a film that should appeal to cricket fans, sports fans, and those not remotely interested in sport. A film full of entirely new interviews and perspectives will please the already-initiated, but the wider significance of this cricketing success make it accessible, and vital, viewing for everyone.

This would be it. A very, very good example of the documentary film art, I think. I was a child in the 70s, and loved watching the matches and players referred to in this film, but had no idea what was going on off the pitch.

Of course the film makers have a point of view they are promoting, but since it's one that was NEVER heard elsewhere, it is certainly fair that they take the chance to provide a different context and some background to the very widely promoted views of the Windies pace attack of the time. The clear connection between the socio-political environment and the players' motivation was fascinating, and the graphic illustration of the shameless and shameful racism and colonial bigotry was illuminating. I can't recommend this film highly enough to any fan of sports documentaries.

An excellent snapshot of an era in which the West Indies turned cricket's traditional order on its head and gave it all a soundtrack too through reggae music. It is told almost entirely through the viewpoint of the team members with the occasional burst of pride from musicians and poets, mainly through song and notably Bunny Wailer provides some excellent insight into the pride the islands took in their united team.

There was plenty said about the team by the (foreign to them) press and commentators as they raced to the top of test cricket but not so much credit so I think the film's solely West Indies angle is justified. The film also explores the legacy of prejudice that the West Indies team did much to expose. Corporal Jones always maintained that "they don't like it up them" and Holding, Garner, Roberts and Croft proved that it was true of us too. Croft's decision to tour Apartheid South Africa is given to the viewer to judge. Respect was earned and cricket changed with it. It may be a one sided view but you leave with no doubt that the helmet-less and pad-scant men that stood up to such bowling were brave souls too.

Great music, audience maturity respected, wince-inducing footage, some laughs and Sir Vivian Richards. An hour and a half well spent for me.

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning

A documentary by Stevan Riley, charting the rise of the West Inides cricket team during the late 1970s and early 1980s, from their humiliating defeat in Australia in 1975, which spurred them on to form an electrifying team that took on the likes of England and India, lifting the hopes of a people and a nation, from the sturdy leadership of Clive Lloyd, onto the enigmatic Viv Richards.

In documentary terms, Fire in Babylon is a relatively unremarkable effort, not playing out in any way that really breaks from genre conventions or offers anything you haven't seen before. However, the natural colour and vibrancy of the culture it's telling the story of manages to give it a real life and soul of it's own, that is in itself something different. ***

When i was growing up , the West Indies were the greatest cricket team in the world. I remember the great Viv Richards smacking the ball all over the place and the " Blackwash" tour of 1985 when The West Indies thrashed us 5-0 but i wasn't aware of the history of what happened years before then.

Fire in Babylon is a fantastic documentary film that charts the history of how and why these fantastic sportsman remain legends in West Indian sporting and cultural history.

This is the story told from the point of view of the players and some West Indian musicians and famous personalities. It's a mixture if interviews interspersed with some fantastic old footage.

These men had a grudge and not just a cricket grudge. They wanted revenge for history and i don't think the English realised it - in fact i know we didn't.

A group of people like these come along once in a lifetime and "Fire In Babylon" documents what they did perfectly.

Great Stuff.