This film is amazing. From the first minute, I was gripped by the incredibly desolate Afghan landscape, by the otherworldliness of the scenes, which are beautiful and bizarre at the same time, and by the way Afghanistan is shown: torn apart by war and violence.
Belgian director Pieter-Jan De Pue has made this film in a semi-documentary style. He documents the lives of a gang of teenage boys, living in a yurt high in the Pamir mountains. They make a living by robbing or supporting passing camel caravans, whichever pays best.
When the film progresses, you realize that most of it must be fictional, but that doesn't really matter. It's the visual way De Pue tells the story of this country that counts. He contrasts the scenes of the boys with footage of American soldiers shooting and bombing the nearby villages. These scenes are clearly not fictional, they are the result of De Pues short assignment as an embedded photographer.
The real challenge must have been to edit all the material, in order to make a coherent movie. The director uses old tales, told by a voice-over, to create a fairytale-like atmosphere. But the reality contrasts in a spectacular way with these old tales. One very telling scene shows an American officer, holding a passionate speech for a group of local men, with the help of an interpreter. We have made your area safer, he tells them, and it will remain safe if you help us. Are you willing to do that, yes or no? All he gets for an answer is complete silence.
De Pue has put his heart and soul into this film, and has risked his life making it. But it has paid off. This is a film that leaves you gaping in amazement, and in admiration for the effort he has put into it.
Belgian director Pieter-Jan De Pue has made this film in a semi-documentary style. He documents the lives of a gang of teenage boys, living in a yurt high in the Pamir mountains. They make a living by robbing or supporting passing camel caravans, whichever pays best.
When the film progresses, you realize that most of it must be fictional, but that doesn't really matter. It's the visual way De Pue tells the story of this country that counts. He contrasts the scenes of the boys with footage of American soldiers shooting and bombing the nearby villages. These scenes are clearly not fictional, they are the result of De Pues short assignment as an embedded photographer.
The real challenge must have been to edit all the material, in order to make a coherent movie. The director uses old tales, told by a voice-over, to create a fairytale-like atmosphere. But the reality contrasts in a spectacular way with these old tales. One very telling scene shows an American officer, holding a passionate speech for a group of local men, with the help of an interpreter. We have made your area safer, he tells them, and it will remain safe if you help us. Are you willing to do that, yes or no? All he gets for an answer is complete silence.
De Pue has put his heart and soul into this film, and has risked his life making it. But it has paid off. This is a film that leaves you gaping in amazement, and in admiration for the effort he has put into it.