In the film Osama, directed and created by Siddiq Barmak, we’re following a mother and her daughter in the midst of a pacific protest, where women are marching to be allowed to go to work and work by themselves, without the need to be accompanied or controlled by a male figure. After the women caught by the military were sent to prison, both the mother and grandmother force the daughter to disguise herself as a boy (Osama) so her mother can work, and eventually Osama can get a job as well. Nonetheless, we as the audience know it won’t be a smooth ride, rather a free fall where we hope for the best for Osama and her family, cheering and worrying with them along the way.
This film, based on real life events, from the beginning of the first shot transports the audience to a real setting, where for most part of the movie you would think is a documentary and not something fictional, since it is taking inspiration and trying to mirror past and current issues regarding the role of women in society, and their power and importance in different workplaces. The director and crew behind this production were able to capture this aura of realism by the many uses of hand shots mixed with tracking shots. We as the audience are literally following Osama in her quest of remaining invisible and posing as a boy with the help of the camera as a third character, always lurking, listening, and showing the hard truths of Osama’s life, her family, and the people surrounding her. In addition to this, the film breaks the fourth wall with the audience by sentencing the cameraman responsible of the footage of the women’s protest with the death penalty, focusing on the sound of the gunshots to demonstrate his passing and the meaning of justice in this not so fictional government.
Also, the use of different props throughout the film, add to the belief that this is beyond a work of fiction, but evidence of a crime kept hidden for a long time until now. For instance, the garments Osama wears to conceal her real identity, emphasizing on the shoes she wears as a girl while dressing up as a boy, puts the audience in a hopeful and tense state, until Osama’s boss intervenes and asks her to take them off, stripping the last layer of her female self and her obscured identity. Another example would be the rope Osama likes to use to jump, reflecting her innocence and immature childish persona, even when she is arrested and is jumping with the rope inside the cell, picturing a paradox of confinement and infant freedom in the same space and scene.
As a result, the film achieves the goal of engulfing the audience in a misogynistic “fictional” world, where Osama is the key to understand the troubles and tribulations a woman has to experience in order to survive in a society teamed against gender equality, where camera shots, props, setting, among other film equipment/tools enhance the experience and capture the audience’s attention with its bold, raw and unflinching depiction of unbalanced power relations and justice.
Julieta Esquivel Cano
Osama portrays a harsh reality shaped by social issues and ideologies that unsettle its viewers. The narrative makes a reflection on the gender divide in Afghanistan, the rise of the Taliban, and the imposition of laws that appear senseless, oppressive, and dismissive of fundamental human rights, especially those of women. It examines how individuals endure these realities, following Osama’s life and her interdependence with those around her.
While I have not yet watched the film, Sergio highlighted the most important elements that make it both impactful and significant to our understanding of these issues.
I believe that films like Osama possess the transformative power to change how we perceive the world. Cinema, as an art form, captures human emotions, fantasies, and, in cases like this, raw realities that might otherwise remain distant from our own, or they might make a person who is living a similar reality connected and seen. With this perspective in mind, I look forward to experiencing Osama.
Loveleen Kaur
Hello Julieta
I would like to say that you have provides a thoughtful and insightful reflection on the film, recognizing its powerful thematic focus on gender inequality and the harsh realities faced by women under Taliban rule. Also you have effectively highlighted the way Osama uses cinematic tools like camera work and props to immerse the audience in its grim narrative, echoing the emotional intensity of the original feedback. However, you can enrich your analysis by diving deeper into specific cinematic elements , such as the tracking shots and props, and exploring how they uniquely shape the audience’s experience. Overall, your essay demonstrates a solid understanding of the film’s emotional and social implications.
Thank you for writing about it.