The Boy Mir: Ten Years in Afghanistan 2012
Distributed by Microcinema International/Microcinema DVD, 71 Stevenson St. Suite 400, San Francisco, CA 94105; 415-447-9750
Produced by Seventh Art Productions
Directed by Phil Grabsky
DVD, color, 90 min.
Sr. High - General Adult
Adolescence, Area Studies, Biography, Middle Eastern Studies, Military Studies, Religious Studies, Storytelling
Date Entered: 05/24/2012
Reviewed by Brad Eden, Ph.D., Dean of Library Services, Valparaiso UniversityThis film is really part two of a previous film I recently reviewed, The Boy Who Plays on the Buddhas of Baniyan. Whereas the first film follows the boy Mir for one year, this film follows him for ten years, from age eight to age eighteen. Both films examine the life of a boy in Afghanistan on a micro level, and the 30-year wars within Afghanistan on a macro level.
In 2001, the Taliban destroyed the Buddhas of Bamiyan, the tallest stone statues in the world. Near these statues lives Mir with his family. They barely eke out an existence, yet amid the devastation and death that has been a part of Afghan life for decades, Mir must find his way through survival and change and awareness into adulthood, and this second film watches him grow and change from a boy into a man. The director shows the meager existence of the Afghan people near and around the destroyed statues, as well as everyday life with Mir and his friends. The change just in appearance and demeanor that Mir goes through as he matures and grows is astounding, as does his hopes and dreams from the first film. Anyone who wants to show how the current and former wars in Afghanistan are affecting its people, needs to see and show this movie. It has won numerous awards, and is a story that truly pulls the heartstrings at all levels.