PickFlick

The Essence of Terror

2013•58m
Documentary

Journalists Johan Persson and Martin Schibbye talk about the horrendous days in the desert, rail executions and false terror charges. They were arrested before they could report on the violence in the closed state of Ogaden. But the Ethiopian regime failed to silence them. With the help of never-before-seen video material and testimonies smuggled out of the country by a high ranking official, the whole story can finally be told. About Johan and Martin. About the violence in Ogaden. And about the prisoners of dictatorship.

Open in PickFlick

Production

Laika Film & Television, SVT

Language

SV

Status

Released

Release Date

Cast

Martin Schibbye

Martin Schibbye

Self

Johan Persson

Self

Similar Movies

It's Hard Being Loved by Jerks

It's Hard Being Loved by Jerks

6.8
2008
Movie

The murder of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh by an Islamic extremist in 2004, followed by the publishing of twelve satirical cartoons depicting the prophet Mohammed that was commissioned for the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, provides the incendiary framework for Daniel Leconte's provocative documentary, It's Hard Being Loved by Jerks.

It's Hard Being Loved by Jerks

2008
6.8
No Image

Art as a Weapon

6.0
2014
Movie

Street art, creativity and revolution collide in this beautifully shot film about art’s ability to create change. The story opens on the politically charged Thailand/Burma border at the first school teaching street art as a form of non-violent struggle. The film follows two young girls (Romi & Yi-Yi) who have escaped 50 years of civil war in Burma to pursue an arts education in Thailand. Under the threat of imprisonment and torture, the girls use spray paint and stencils to create images in public spaces to let people know the truth behind Burma's transition toward "artificial democracy." Eighty-two hundred miles away, artist Shepard Fairey is painting a 30’ mural of a Burmese monk for the same reasons and in support of the students' struggle in Burma. As these stories are inter-cut, the film connects these seemingly unrelated characters around the concept of using art as a weapon for change.

Art as a Weapon

2014
6.0
Earth's Greatest Enemy

Earth's Greatest Enemy

9.0
2025
Movie

In Abby Martin's second feature documentary, Earth’s Greatest Enemy reveals a hidden truth behind the climate crisis: the role of the U.S. military as the world’s largest institutional polluter. Drawing on powerful testimonies from veterans, scientists, and frontline communities, it uncovers how military operations poison ecosystems, accelerate global warming, and sacrifice the future for endless expansion. From Alaska’s melting glaciers to contaminated bases across the U.S. and toxic battlefields abroad, Earth’s Greatest Enemy delivers a provocative and unflinching examination of the untouchable institution playing an outsized role in the climate crisis.

Earth's Greatest Enemy

2025
9.0
The 600: The Soldier’s Story

The 600: The Soldier’s Story

2019
Movie

The story of 600 men who protected and rescued civilians during the Rwandan genocide before helping to liberate their country in 1994.

The 600: The Soldier’s Story

2019
Victims 1918

Victims 1918

7.0
2008
Movie

A documentary on the executions that took place during and after the Finnish civil war in 1918.

Victims 1918

2008
7.0
Blue Helmet

Blue Helmet

5.4
1995
Movie

A young man, who served as a peacekeeper in Bosnia and Herzegovina for a few months during the war, recounts his experiences. Throughout the film, we only see his face filmed in close-up, along with a few photos. The interview acts as a strong testimony to the failure of the international community in the Yugoslav crisis.

Blue Helmet

1995
5.4
Resurface

Resurface

6.8
2017
Movie

A suicidal war veteran finds like-minded souls in a surf therapy program that helps traumatized soldiers heal while riding the waves.

Resurface

2017
6.8
Safeguarding Military Information

Safeguarding Military Information

5.3
1942
Movie

World War II propaganda short which focuses on the dangers of inadvertent dispersal of military information.

Safeguarding Military Information

1942
5.3
We Are Many

We Are Many

6.7
2014
Movie

The story of the biggest demonstration in human history, which took place on 15th February 2003, against the impending war on Iraq.

We Are Many

2014
6.7
Accidental Anarchist

Accidental Anarchist

6.7
2017
Movie

Carne Ross was a government highflyer. A career diplomat who believed Western Democracy could save us all. But working inside the system he came to see its failures, deceits and ulterior motives. He felt at first hand the corruption of power. After the Iraq war Carne became disillusioned, quit his job and started searching for answers.

Accidental Anarchist

2017
6.7
Silvered Water

Silvered Water

6.6
2014
Movie

Shot by a reported “1,001 Syrians” according to the filmmakers, SILVERED WATER, SYRIA SELF-PORTRAIT impressionistically documents the destruction and atrocities of the civil war through a combination of eye-witness accounts shot on mobile phones and posted to the internet, and footage shot by Bedirxan during the siege of Homs. Bedirxan, an elementary school teacher in Homs, had contacted Mohammed online to ask him what he would film, if he was there. Mohammed, working in forced exile in Paris, is tormented by feelings of cowardice as he witnesses the horrors from afar, and the self-reflexive film also chronicles how he is haunted in his dreams by a Syrian boy once shot to death for snatching his camera on the street.

Silvered Water

2014
6.6
The Brave Class

The Brave Class

6.7
2017
Movie

Three college students start a social experiment to prove that reality changes according to the words we use to describe it. Through research, activist actions, and artistic interventions, they analyze the importance of language in the way we understand the world. The documentary includes analysis from more than 20 international experts and leaders in the fields of political communication and information.

The Brave Class

2017
6.7