agmtw logo
search
Osama (2003)

Osama (2003)

A devastating and important account of the oppression of Afghan women under Taliban rule

The Very Best

8.9

Movie

Afghanistan, Iran
Arabic, English, French
Drama
2003
SIDDIQ BARMAK
Arif Herati, Malik Akhlaqi, Marina Golbahari
83 min

What it's about

After the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan and the restriction of women in public life, a preteen girl is forced to masquerade as a boy in order to find work to support her mother and grandmother.

The take

It has become increasingly rare to find films made in Afghanistan, so when a movie like Osama comes along, it becomes nothing short of essential viewing. This is a profoundly depressing but beautifully crafted story of a young girl made to look like a boy so as to go unnoticed by Taliban forces while trying to help her family. It's a simple film wherein this character's budding awareness of her girlhood is set against a terrifying backdrop of violence, abuse, and fundamentalist extremism—all of which director Siddiq Barmak keeps off the screen.

Barmak knows exactly what to point his camera at, covering multiple angles of life in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan without calling attention to himself, and still finding ways to show the smallest shreds of sympathy and support hiding within this society. And in the lead role, a teenage Marina Golbahari delivers a towering, heartbreaking performance that never registers as anything but authentic. The fear that she embodies is almost too real to watch without becoming afraid yourself. Osama is incredibly difficult viewing, but it's a truly valuable work of art that deserves to be preserved.

Comments

Add a comment

Your name

Your comment

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

The Guilty (2018)

A minimalist, razor-sharp thriller that will have you gasping for air.

9.0

System Crasher (2019)

A tale of trauma and one of the most talked about movies on Netflix in 2020.

9.0

Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)

A romance from France like no other

8.2

Divines (2016)

Half female buddy movie, half French gangster thriller

9.0

Manon of the Springs (1986)

Continuing the story of Jean de Florette, Manon of the Springs follows a quiet young woman who must avenge her father and protect the springs from two crooked men

7.5

Things to Come (2016)

A beautiful, bittersweet portrait of resilience

8.5

Vagabond (1985)

In a series of flashbacks, this drama traces the final steps of a transient woman on her uncharted journey across the French countryside to her lonely end

7.9

Holy Spider (2022)

A timely and terrifying noir that takes on systemic abuse and corruption in Iran

8.0

Toni Erdmann (2016)

7.9

From the Ashes (2024)

A disappointing fictionalized depiction of a real-life Saudi all-girl's school fire

3.0

Curated by humans, not algorithms.

agmtw logo

© 2024 agoodmovietowatch, all rights reserved.