That Thing On My Head

A British Muslim girl questions that thing on her head. She does so on a commentary track, while the camera explores aspects of religious symbolism, or whatever it may be, of the scarf that must be worn.

For this girl, it represents oppression, forbidden fruit and a person with no future.

"I am none of the above," she says. "I am so much more."

At a time when France has banned the wearing of scarves in schools for Muslim pupils, Arifa Farooq's film has an immediate relevance. What raises it above that of a political gesture is her imaginative interpretation.

She has the eye and sensibility of a true filmmaker. The power and the glory is in the image.