KBT Presents: KANDAHAR

I don't pretend to be anywhere near an expert on Middle Eastern Cinema, but the few I've seen (Turtles Can Fly, Baran, Osama, and The Exam) have had a few things in common. They deal with the common people in often extreme poverty. They are overtly political in some way They typically have a gritty feel with moments of quiet visual poetry.
This week's KBT is a film that walks the line between fictional film and documentary, between absurd vulgarity and lush cinematography. To put it simply, Kandahar seems to fit the mould. It's a Canadian/French/Iranian co-production made in 2001 and is kind of a final document of life under the Taliban just before it's collapse at the end of that year. It was filmed in mainly in Afghanistan without Taliban permission.
An Afghan refugee, Nafas, living in Canada receives a note from her sister. In the note her sister writes that she is committing suicide at the next eclipse because she was maimed severely, and cannot take life anymore. Heading back to Afghanistan, Nafas is quickly reminded why she fled her home country, as she joins up with a group of women traveling across the desert, in an attempt to locate her sister before the eclipse.
Kandahar has been criticized for its loose narrative, but has been praised for it's potent imagery, which is quite affecting. The film is certainly somewhat off the typical style of film I show, but then unpredictability is the spice of life.
Come on by at 8:00pm. Showtime is 8:30pm. Kandahar runs a crisp 85 minutes.