In “Beyond the Call,” three middle-aged men, former soldiers and modern-day knights, travel the world delivering life-saving humanitarian aid directly into the hands of civilians and doctors in some of the most dangerous places, the front lines of war.
Ed Artis, Jim Laws and Walt Ratterman are self-styled Knights of Malta. In 1995, they formed Knightsbridge International, a unique humanitarian aid organization, whose motto is “High Adventure and Service to Humanity.” As Artis explains: “We’re not there to change anybody’s politics, we’re not in the God business, and we pay our own way.” Their specialty is going where death from landmines, bullets, or bombs is as frequent as death from hunger, disease, or the elements. As Laws tells it simply, We do what we can, when we can, because we can.
The trio’s convictions and courage drive them to places such as Afghanistan, Albania, Chechnya, Cambodia, Burma, Thailand, Rwanda and the southern Philippines, where few (and often no) humanitarian aid organizations are around. The camera follows Artis, Laws and Ratterman as they take us on a courageous journey.