"Return of the Taliban," is compelling viewing -- a must-see for anyone with a loved one fighting in Afghanistan, and mandatory viewing for anyone even remotely curious about what's happening in the literal frontlines of the war on terror.

Veteran Frontline correspondent Martin Smith's film is truth-telling at its best: straightforward, informative and thoughtful, but not judgmental.

"Return of the Taliban" won't win any awards. It won't cause a stir on the film festival red carpet. It isn't flashy. It isn't controversial -- not even when Smith pins down an evasive Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf on Pakistan's porous border with Afghanistan and the Pakistanis' diffident attitude toward Taliban fighters.

The difference, though -- and the reason "Return of the Taliban" is worth seeing -- is that Smith delves into the political, religious, cultural and historical underpinnings of the entire region. He treks deep inside the mountain passes, and explores the complex web of alliances, broken promises, deceits and betrayals among the Taliban, al-Qaida fighters, village elders, Pakistani military and NATO forces in the region.

The facts on the ground are familiar enough to anyone who has followed the news of late. NATO has 8,000 soldiers, mostly British and Canadian, in southern Afghanistan, where they took over from a U.S.-led coalition in August.

Watching "Return of the Taliban" is a sobering experience. There are no eye-popping visuals, no "wow" moments, no dramatic "gets" in one-on-one confrontations with U.S. and Pakistani government officials and military decision-makers. And yet, "Return of the Taliban" is urgent, vital filmmaking -- plain and straightforward, but never dull. (10 p.m. PBS, channel 56, cable 67)

The Humanities Research Group, in cooperation with Political Science, the Windsor Jewish Community Centre, and the Canada-Israel Committee, is pleased to present a free lecture by noted journalist Jim Lederman, "The Lebanese War: a Global Conflict Writ Small," on Thursday, 5 October, at 3.30pm in the Rose Room, Vanier Hall . The longest-serving foreign correspondent in Jerusalem, Lederman is currently a senior Middle East analyst for Oxford Analytica. In a career stretching over four decades, he has been a reporter for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, National Public Radio, and The New York Post . He is the author of two books: Battle Lines: The American Media and the Intifada , and Israel at 50: History and Economy .