Directed by : Hana Makhmalbaf
Cast : Nikbakht Noruz (Bakhtay)
Abbas Alijome (Abbas)
Abdolali Hoseinali (Talib boy)
This film is based on the war in Afghanistan. The girl, Bakthtay lives in the caves under the remains of the Buddha statues of Bamiyan. Bakhtay has a dream. She becomes obsessed to attend a newly opened school because Bakhtay is fascinated by Abbas' schoolbook. She wants to know to read. However, she does not have money to buy stationery.
In order to go to school, she has to raise the money for a pencil and a notebook. Abbas asks Bakhtay to sell the eggs of the family's chicken. Bakhtay takes four eggs to the market but two eggs are broken. However, she does not give up to earn money by selling the remaining eggs. She exchanges the eggs to a bread and sells it at ten rupees. With ten rupees, she only gets enough for the notebook, but takes her mother's lipstick as a writing pencil.
On her journey, a gang of boys who is playing a game in which they are Taliban fighting Americans terrorise Bakhtay. They rig the pages from her book to make "paper aeroplane", take away her irreligious lipstick, put a paper bag over her head and pretend to play a stone game with her by burying her alive. "in God's name, let me go to school," Bakhtay pleads.
When Bakhtay meets the gang of boys for the second time again, Abbas pretends that he is dead and he asks Bakthtay to "die" if she wants to live. Bakthtay hesitates. She stands still and she is about to cry. In the end, she realizes that in order to live, she has to die. "Dying", is the only way to be set free.
The symbol used in this film is Bakthtay's notebook. This shows the effects of the war in Afghanistan on the local children. In order to attend to school, the children face many obstacles such as financial problem and bad study environment in the open-air school as well as home. Children could not get a good environment to study especially girls. Girls' school is located in a very far place where it can only be found where they have to walk by following the river direction.
The message of this film is to tell people about the bad effects of war to the society, and the country. War is definitely bringing more disadvantages to this world. As a viewer, I personally think the message of this film is conveyed well because it tells people how hard the life is for the children after the war in their country. This film also makes us to think deeply and teach us to appreciate everything that we are having in our life now.
Rating for this film ★★★☆☆
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