The first major Afghan movie produced after the fall of the Taliban, Siddiq Barmak's Osama (2003) is not only a vital social document, but also an intense, moving film. Centering on a girl who must disguise herself as a boy to work so her family can survive, Osama mercilessly exposes the effects of the sub-human status of women under the Taliban, including father-, son-, and brotherless families who face starvation because professionally trained mothers can't work, brutal punishments for those who help females find jobs, and the mullahs' power to force marriage upon young fatherless girls. Barmak's arresting visuals reveal how such tiny details as a pair of shoes or an exposed ankle can be a girl's undoing; the lyrically shot opening sequence of a women's protest is at once a startling image of a sea of blue burkas and a potent reminder of the women's dehumanization. The poignant relationship between the girl and the street boy who nicknames her "Osama" to protect her when they're taken to a madrassah attests to Barmak's skill with his non-professional actors (Barmak found lead actress Marina Golbahari when she asked him for change), as well as the invidious effect of the Taliban regime on malleable young males. Criminally overlooked by the Academy, but winner of the Best Foreign Language Film Golden Globe, Osama is one of the rare overtly political films that succeeds as a work of cinematic artistry.