tvashtar2919 Reviews

The Boy Who Plays on the Buddhas of Bamiyan (2004)

human inaptitude

[6/10 · 7 June 2006]

The name of this movie should be 'The boy who lives in a cave with losers'. While the boy is making the best of life, the rest of his family are embarrassing examples of adults. They show no ability or desire to change their situation in life. Much of this is a look at before and after the Taliban. With commentary by the adults we learn how a political vote brought about a terror on the valley. "Afghans welcomed them with open arms, because they were Muslim, with a strong belief in the Qu'ran, Mullahs and mosques. They said they were Talib, religious students. People didn't realize they were enemies of the land and their lives." Perfect example of why you should never blindly follow someone who professes morality. By demanding religious doctrines on the community by law, it only comes down to the zealotry of those now in charge.

We are watching a year of life after the breakdown of a society. While we do not know the mentality of the rest of the valley, we are subjected to this group of beggars. While living in a cave, eating grass or tripe when given by the butcher, sitting around freezing to death, the brother and father are unwilling to bother getting a job, even to the extent of being too lazy to go outside and get some wood. The one thing they managed to accomplish in this subsistence, below the standards of an animal, is the creation of a baby. While the documentary is done quite well, the people presented are horrible.

Second Skin (2000)

film noir boredom

[4/10 · 11 December 2005]

Standard mob story with pretty girl falling for the wrong guy. She ends up with amnesia and starts her life over with the guy who happened to be there. Lots of behind the scenes intrigue going on, with secrets being kept by everyone. Tough to tell who is scamming who, and just how we got to this point of payback. It all comes apparent in the end, but by then you really don't care. The characters do there lines okay, but not much to work with. He gets the pretty girl, but there is no spark and no reason to believe she would ever be with him. Maybe if they used different actors, then the emotion would have been better. Then we would try to believe the mystery or even bother to understand it. This looks like it could have been okay, but along the way it just ends up flat.

Green Dragon (2001)

Those still alive after a war.

[8/10 · 16 November 2005]

This story is about tragedy and the uprooting of whole societies. This specific story is a telling of Vietnam, but it could be transferred to many other moments in history. When a people have their whole lives destroyed by war, then how do you start over? We see the various forms that emotions can go through, and how each individual deals with them. Even when everything is gone, you end up with choices. How you handle the worst of times, can determine how you live out the rest of your life. There is not a right answer in most cases, but you have to find a way to continue.

Patrick and Forest are only extras in this movie. They help create the set up for the refugees, who must find a way to begin again. Some want to go back, which is almost impossible as life can never be the same after war. The continual theme throughout this movie is a longing for peace. Emotions are stretched to the end as people search for loved ones, and search for meaning. There is always hope when looking to the future, but the devastation of loss will never be forgotten.

It is a very good telling of how wars affect the survivors. The headlines are written down in the history books, but life is continued on a personal level. It is hard to imagine what it would be like to actually survive, and yet it has happened so many times in the conflicts between cultures.