Narrative

the narrative of the film is in chronological order as it shows the journey travelled by the five men to blow themselves up in the name of their god. as they decide how they going to die, one of the men die by accident, from there the film takes its title- four lions. this also structures the film as it enables the audience to start a countdown as to whom will die first, how and when.

you could say that the terrorists claim to be the heroes in the eyes of their religion, but in reality they are the villains. they cause the damage in the name of their god- although having been told not to, in addition, at one point one of the men plans to bomb his own local mosque- the on he visits- whilst his friends father is inside.

in terms of the protagonists and identity, as the men plan to kill themselves to please each other, some decide they no longer wish to waste their life and that they should no longer deserve to be pushed into an act they are so deadly against. with hesitancy being a theme toward the end of the film from the protagonists- alienation starts to take place. this has the same effect in the audience- should they forgive the men knowing these acts happen in reality, or should the audience be relieved that they doubt themselves and die an unfortunate and unwilling death.

sounds such as police sirens going off causes panic- however especially when a few bombs have gone off before, this along with the fast paced editing and cuts emphasises the panic and need of stability for the audience watching, but especially for the terrorist attack victims. these effects in any other film would cause distress but due to the film being of the comedy genre the audience are re assured that a harmless ending will entail.