Archive for February, 2004
Osama
by Bill Henry on Feb.20, 2004, under Bill Henry's Movie Reviews
Osama
Directed by Siddiq Barmak
Opening exclusively at the Dupont Circle Theatre 2/20/2004
3 *
A harrowing depiction of life under the Taliban in Afghanistan can be seen in the movie Osama. A recent winner of the foreign language film Golden Globe award from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the movie has also received recommendations from the First Couple and Secretary of State Colin Powell. This true-life horror movie is more frightening than the overwhelming percentage of horror movies you will ever see—all the more so because of the truthfulness of its depiction.
When the Taliban conquered Kabul and took over in Afghanistan, many in the United States and around the world thought the Taliban could provide stability and unity to a country in chaos following war with the Soviet Union and subsequent internal strife. But they quickly realized that the so-called students were little more than totalitarian thugs who would institute restrictions and laws that even the most imaginative science fiction writer would be hard-pressed to duplicate. Women were virtually under house arrest unable to travel unless escorted by a male relative with no exceptions made for women without an available man (quite a sizeable number in a country filled with widows of soldiers). Unfortunately, most of the world was willing to stand by and allow Afghanistan to imprison its own population until September 11th and the subsequent invasion of and destruction of the Taliban government by U.S. forces. Whether you agree with U.S. efforts or not, there is no reason to waste any tears over the dissolution of the reign of terror of these Afghani nut-jobs.
One of the first movies from the post-Taliban Afghanistan, Osama looks at this period depicting one particular story of the oppressive time. We are introduced to a widow barely surviving while in charge of a household with three generations of women. It is decided that the pre-pubescent girl (Marina Golbahari) will have her hair shorn, dressed as a boy, and sent out to get a job working in the shop of a sympathetic neighbor (a friend of the dead husband and father). Reborn as Osama (a name given to her by a beggar boy who knows the truth and initially tries to extort money from the family, before turning sympathetic), she is taken from the shop and forced to attend an Islamic school. Predictably, she is uncovered and the final resolution is literally a fate worse than death (although as we see of Taliban justice they are perfectly willing to mete out death on the most specious of grounds).
Writer-director Barmak has accomplished all this under restrictions and levels of privation that are awe-inspiring (including a budget that would be considered low for the catering at your average Hollywood premiere). The story of women in Afghanistan is reduced to the world of Osama. This microcosm appears to be something out of biblical times (except for the automatic rifles which they seem to have plenty of). The buildings remind one of the quips made during the war of bombs that cost more than the items they were being used to blow up. Certainly you have to cut the guy some slack for the acting of the largely inexperienced cast although the circumstances should be enough to get past any roughness here. The exception is Golbahari who seems to be in a constant state of anxiety and terror that draws the audience into her life. One wishes that Barmak were simply a better storyteller as the movie can be confusing and repetitive (at one point the grandmother proceeds to tell a story that she has already told).
But these are small objections in a movie so otherwise affecting. One hopes that this movie will be part of the Taliban’s obituary and that they will be permanently tossed onto history’s dust heap where they can join with their brother Nazis and Khmer Rouge.
–Bill Henry
Related Reading:
The Film Club: A Memoir
60 Great Horror Movie Posters (Illustrated History of Movies Through Posters, Volume 19)
Mamma Mia!: The Movie Soundtrack Featuring the Songs of ABBA (Piano Vocal Guitar)
100 Modern Soundtracks (BFI Screen Guides)
Looking at Movies: An Introduction to Film, Second Edition ( Set with DVD)Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen
by Bill Henry on Feb.16, 2004, under Bill Henry's Movie Reviews
Bill’s Review
Coming out of a recent preview of the new Disney flick Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen, another online critic of no particular distinction asked me what I thought of the movie and I complained that I found it excruciating. She then smugly replied, “Well, you’re not a 12-year-old girl.†(continue reading…)
Related Reading:
Stone Age Soundtracks: The Acoustic Archaeology of Ancient Sites
Movie-Made America: A Cultural History of American Movies
Firefly: Music from the Original Television Soundtrack
Daredevil: Music From The Motion Picture(Soundtrack)50 First Dates
by Bill Henry on Feb.13, 2004, under Bill Henry's Movie Reviews
Bill’s Review
So while watching the new Adam Sandler movie 50 First Dates, I was minding my own business, moseying along, laughing at some of the jokes, not laughing at others, noting the historical significance of the first walrus projectile vomiting joke in movie history (take that, D.W. Griffith), and a crazy thing happened—the movie got better. It started off like a puerile slob comedy with a few good chuckles and then it started improving before finally culminating in a courageous and satisfying ending. (continue reading…)
Related Reading:
Film Directing: Shot by Shot: Visualizing from Concept to Screen (Michael Wiese Productions)
Attack of the 'B' Movie Posters (The Illustrated History of Moves Through Posters Series Vol. 14)
1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die: 5th Anniversary Edition
The New York Times Guide to the Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made, Updated & Revised (Film Critics of the New York Times)The Dreamers
by Bill Henry on Feb.13, 2004, under Bill Henry's Movie Reviews
The Dreamers
Directed by Bernardo Bertolucci
Opening wide 2/13/2004
2 *
The newest and least-used rating of the Motion Picture Association of America is the NC-17. Most Hollywood-produced movies are contractually obliged to deliver no higher than an R (and more likely these days, a PG-13) since they do not wish to release a movie whose audience is automatically limited. Add to this such bits of regional “censorship†as newspapers refusing to accept ads for NC-17-rated movies, theatre chains refusing to play them, and certain video stores refusing to carry them and it is understandable why there are so few. More often than not, movies that would receive the NC-17 enter the marketplace unrated the saving the MPAA’s rating charge and allowing our disapproving Miss Grundys the cover of saying that they are holding the line against that NC-17 filth. As one of the Cassandras who predicted that changing (the unregistered) X to (the registered) NC-17 would make no difference, I am heartened by the ongoing arguments from some dolts who think that adding another rating (such as A for adults only) would change things. The ratings board exists only to give the Hollywood film industry enough cover to stave off censorship boards with a chimera of responsibility.
Film Art: An Introduction with Tutorial CD-ROM
Movie Posters: 2009 Wall Calendar
Cinematic Storytelling: The 100 Most Powerful Film Conventions Every Filmmaker Must Know
The Independent Movie Poster BookBarbershop 2: Back in Business
by Bill Henry on Feb.06, 2004, under Bill Henry's Movie Reviews
Bill’s Review
The celebration of the barbershop as an important part of the community and the average man’s life made for an enjoyable comedy two years ago with Barbershop. The success of the ensemble comedy as well as MGM’s ongoing failure to turn a profit on anything else (or, at least, anything else that does not feature James Bond) ensured that we would get a sequel. But rather than a barbershop, Barbershop 2: Back in Business feels more like church because the movie spends an awful lot of time preaching. Also, it would not have killed anyone if the sequel had tried to be as funny as the original. (continue reading…)
Understanding Movies Value Package (includes Filmmakers on Film (CD)) (9th Edition)
Japanese Movie Posters: Yakuza, Monster, Pink, and Horror