Despite having to his credit one of the most interesting filmographies of current animation, Cartoon Saloon it is still a study not as well known as it should be. ‘The bread of war’, one of his most brilliant and devastating films, will leave Netflix on May 31.
the power of stories
Parvana is an 11-year-old girl who survives as she can in Kabul (Afghanistan), under the terrorist regime that does not allow women to even go out alone. When his father is captured by the Talibanhis family runs out of resources and decides to pose as a boy to be able to work.
‘The bread of war’ (‘The Breadwinner’) is the third Cartoon Saloon film, released in 2017 and Directed by Nora Twomey, also director of ‘The Secret of the Book of Kells’ and ‘Daddy’s Dragon’. The script is in charge of Anita Doron and It is based on the novels by Deborah Ellis..
The first thing that catches our attention about this film is the thematic leap it meant for Cartoon Saloon: the Irish animation studio has us used to fantastic stories and here immerses us in the terrible reality of the Afghan people.
We accompany Parvana and see how she is forced to manage so that her family can survive. The script does not intend to use the Taliban regime as a dramatic excuse, but rather shows genuine sensitivity and interest in reflecting what was the First Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (happened between 1996 and 2001).
The movie is hard but because reality is too, and the story reflects it with respect and without the need to use tear gas to be heartbreaking. There is violence but it is never shown in a morbid or exaggerated way and the drama of the characters is genuinely moving.
However, it is not a story made to wallow in pain, thanks in large part to our protagonist. Tape does not idealize Parvana as an unbeatable heroine: She is a girl, she did not ask to have to bear that responsibility and she wakes up every day afraid of what could happen to her or her family.
Precisely, he manages to get ahead thanks to those little rays of hope that come from other people that he ends up meeting in the daily odyssey that is to bring bread to his house. People who show solidarity even in a environment in which a simple gesture of kindness can cost you your life.
The film also talks about something just as important to survive: the power of stories. The stories that Parvana tells her brother at night, fantastic stories that make his imagination run wild and they look for a meaning to things even when there is none.
It is there where Cartoon Saloon recovers the fantasy and it allows us, at the same time as its characters, to escape to another world and even go on adventures. The studio differentiates the animation between these scenes and the rest, thus managing to get us into that fantastic atmosphere in which anything can happen.
It is a film that is especially recommended for adult audiences, who have a broader view of the social context they are talking about, but a child audience can also understand it. from 12 years.
‘The bread of war’ is a gem of animation that exudes sensitivity and strikes a very difficult balance: It’s heartbreaking without being tear-jerking, and emotional without turning into contrived pep talk. Take the opportunity to see it while it is still available at streaming.
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