The Divided Island

A comprehensive and detailed account of the history of the Turkish/Greek Cypriot conflicts in Cyprus, “The Divided Island” is at times a very tough watch, but it is a vital one. Especially in the current political climate across the world, generations are often emotionally removed from the consequences of fear-based, grudge-based conflict, which perpetrates horrors and trauma that echoes and cycles on and on.

The documentary handles this with grace, and very deftly starts from an all too familiar, all too modern place of incitement and interference from the British, which descends into decades-long violence that will remind you of a lot of current conflicts across the world, and not just the ‘obvious’ ones.

The film has no flourish, no self-aggrandisement - it puts the subject matter, which is dense and sensitive, at the forefront, with first person testimony and archival footage weaved together in beautiful ways. It’s a must see for either a crash course on the history of Cyprus, or a re-reminder of what the current situation is, which you can carry into your understanding of Cyprus’ strategic value in the region.