My favorite scene is when the girls are counting bullet marks on the wall. The scene is both sad and touching. Also, the scene where Nooreh talks to the soldier holding a big automatic weapon. It shows how these kids adapted to life in a conflict zone, surrounded by soldiers and guns. The costumes are very accurate. Headscarves, darker colors, clothes the fully cover the body are very typical for any Islamic country. The landscape surrounding the village is breathtaking! The hills, farm animals, trees, the turquoise bridge. What caught my attention are how some of the houses in the village have pretty blue window frames and wooden carvings.
The first sounds you hear in this movie are gun shots in the distance. It's night and as morning approaches, you hear typical Islamic music calling for the morning prayer. The music becomes more upbeat and happy as the girls walk to school. You can feel the girls' joy at being able to attend school. Again, during the night, all you can hear is gun fire.
Ashish Pandey, writer, producer and director of the film, studied sound as his specialization. His talent for this shows throughout the film. Who stands out the most in this movie is definitely the main character - Nooreh. By her example - keeping awake during the night and stopping gun fire - she influences others.
My only negative criticism of the film are the night scenes, which are so dark. I'm afraid that would negatively affect how the movie appears on the big screen. I understand that the filmmaker wants to convey the overall feeling of the night and the fear of war. However, the dark scenes are poorly visible. Fortunately, they don't last too long.
The message of this film is about the desire we have to live in the peace. You should know that there are gun shots marks and a scene with the soldier with automatic weapon. This may be disturbing for children who have come from war-torn countries. After watching this, audiences might be interested in learning more about the conflict in this particular region, plus more about Islamic customs, traditions and way of life. There are nations which have been living in war conflicts for years. We take peace for granted and shouldn't. We should appreciate it more. The last scene, where there are more lights on during the night, is my favorite. It shows how people would do (almost) anything to live in the peace, even sacrifice their sleep if that should help and stop war.
I give this film 5 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 12 to 18 as well as adults. As for special interest, it represents a different religion, Islam and is multi-cultural. Reviewed by Monika B. and Sara S., KIDS FIRST! reviewers.
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