What a pleasure to see a picture where a thousand words of dialogue are stayed by the pictures that tell a thousand words.
JIRGA is a shoe string smell of an oily rag budgeted film that puts a lot of over inflated films to shame.
The title, JIRGA, derives from the Afghan word for a court of tribal elders.
Mike, a former Australian soldier, returns to Afghanistan to find the family of a civilian he accidentally killed during his tour of duty. The incident has weighed heavily on Wheeler’s mind and now as a civilian he wants to do the “civil” thing and make amends by offering financial compensation.
The film begins with that fateful encounter, shot in the green glow of night vision optics.
Fast forward in time and the now civilian Wheeler returns to Afghanistan, not as a soldier, but a smuggler, strapped with cash, committed to atone.
In Kabul, he hires a taxi driver to take him to the tourist attractions of Bamiyan, then offers the cabbie more cash to carry on to Kandahar.
Then they are attacked by the Taliban, detained and interrogated, and Wheeler admits to his mission. The Taliban escort him to the village where his arrested and brought before a jirga.
Written, directed and lensed by Benjamin Gilmour in true guerrilla style, JIRGA strives to show a different perspective of the lives of Afghan villagers suffering under the prolonged conflict prevailing in their country.
Rather than a gung-ho war movie, JIRGA celebrates stunning natural landscapes and a rich culture of music and poetry.
Shot in the mountains of Jalalabad, JIRGA is a film that doesn’t attempt to neatly divide the good from the bad, but instead offers an insight into the character and motives of those the West view as the enemy.
Sam Smith gives a splendidly minimalist performance as the tormented, taciturn Wheeler, while Sher Alam Miskeen Ustad as his reluctant driver is equally splendid either in quiet contemplation or adamant argument.
A little gem of independent film making, JIRGA isn’t made to shock and awe but its sentiments and images certainly resonate.