Buddha Collapsed out of Shame is the second film from Makhmalbaf, whose father Mohsen could aptly be described as a one-man national film industry for Afghanistan. She, in turn, made her first feature (Joy of Madness) at the age of 14, and here again makes the most of every penny with a judiciously edited digital piece featuring non-professionals and using symbolic stand-ins, such as kites for planes, when called to by the budget. In the best instances, though, necessity does prove the mother of invention and some startlingly apposite images arise as a result.In short, it's about an indefatigably determined 6-year-old girl who has set her sights on getting an exercise book and going to school. Her path is beset by a gang of feral boys playing at Taliban footsoldiers, and while using children's bestial behaviour as a crooked mirror to reflect the ludicrousness of the adult world is hardly a new conceit, ever since Lord of the Flies, it's handled to maximum effect and throws the corrosive illness of fundamentalism into sharp focus. It's just a pity that its likely audience is not the one the director would hope to influence.
6/10
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