The Breadwinner

Voices of: Saara Chaudy, Suma Chhaya, Noorin Gulamagaus, Laara Sadiq
Directed by: Nora Twomey
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Animation, Drama
2017

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: In Afghanistan, a young girl must pretend to be a boy to provide for her family after her father is arrested.

Review:

Tim: I certainly didn't expect to ever sit down and watch an animated movie about life under the Taliban in Afghanistan, but The Breadwinner allowed me to do just that. That's the greatest strength of this film- it transports us to a place that has been in the news the last few decades, but one that most Americans don't fully understand. This is an animated movie, but it tackles some mature themes. It's rated PG-13 for a reason. The movie has an uplifting message, but you also see the brutal tactics of the Taliban depicted here. The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Film. It's an entertaining, informative movie that is well worth seeing.

The animation is impressive, not for its cutting edge technique, but because it really works to channel the Afghani culture. The movie doesn't look like anything produced in the United States and that is a great strength. This is a film about Afghanistan, but even the animation aligns with the culture there.

The story is difficult to watch at times, as you see the struggles of an ordinary Afghan family. The Taliban are certainly the villains of this piece and they're depicted in an unflinching manner. The corruption, their barbaric attitudes towards women, arranged marriage, the violence- you see it all and you see how it adversely impacts the good people of Afghanistan. I loved this depiction because without thinking about it, it's easy to label an entire people or an entire country as our "enemies". There's no doubt that there are some evil people in Afghanistan, but most of the country is populated by human beings who want the same things we want- to protect their families, make a living, and allow their children to grow up in a better situation than they did. I loved that this movie connected to the humanity of the Afghan people. It was hard to watch what the culture and those in power did to people here, especially when children are involved. I appreciated this film depicting that. It's a good reminder that animated films can (and should) tell emotional, important stories as well.

I thought the movie did a mostly good job of interspersing the main story of Parvana with the story she was telling of the boy. It often gave a nice balance between the "real" story and the heavily symbolic story she was telling. A few times this back-and-forth felt disruptive, as I was more interested in what was happening to the girl than in this fictitious story she was telling. A few times I felt myself getting frustrated when we leapt back to the story. That being said, it's worth sticking through it, because her story results in a crushingly emotional finale. I wasn't prepared for that ending. It was powerful.

The Breadwinner is an effective movie because it transports us to a place to which we otherwise might never have ventured. I really liked how it told an entertaining story that revealed something unique and powerful about Afghanistan. I can't say I loved the movie as much as I hoped I would, but it was a memorable, worthwhile film.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7



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