Osama (Movie Review) - 2003

Osama Directed By: Siddiq BarmakOsama

Written By: Siddiq BarmakOsama

Cast:Marina Golbahari, Zubaida Sahar, Mohammad Arif Herati, Mohammad Nadre Khwaja, Hamida Refah, Gul Rahaman Ghorbandi

This movie is about a woman and her 12 year old daughter (Marina Golbahari) moving through the streets of Afghanistan trying to find ways to feed themselves. The men in the family have all been killed in various wars.

Under Taliban rule a woman is not allowed to travel on her own without a male family member neither she is allowed to work for her survival. So the mother convinces her daughter to cut her hair and dress as a boy. The girl gets a job from a friend of the family who then tries to help in every way possible. But soon the Taliban come through collecting boys for religious education, and "Osama" the disguised little girl is taken along. Eventually her disguise dramatically weakens and she embarks on a further torture through the judicial system of the Taliban.

The script and camerawork are clever and extremely accomplished, giving us an intimate view of the characters and situations, while disarmingly natural performances make it feel almost like a documentary!

Director, Siddik Barmak, creates some beautiful shots to show the ridiculous regulations placed upon the people of the country. At moments the film is heart stopping. The performances brought forth by Barmak from a non-professional cast are astounding. Golden Globe nominated OSAMA a standing enthusiastic response at its 2003 Cannes Film Festival premiere.

This is a chilling examination of women under fanatical Taliban rule who are deprived of even basic freedom of life. Generally, in some scenes the situation seems to be a bit exaggerated but still the overall look of the Taliban’s role is where extremism goes mad. The story is often horrific, emotional and somewhat preachy. Yet there's such truth here that it can't be ignored.