The Breadwinner stands as an impressive and award-winning animated film directed by the talented Nora Twomey and produced by Cartoon Saloon and Harun’s Vision. The film revolves around the book by Deborah Ellis. It was published in the year 2017 and focuses on the intricacies of Afghan history.
The Breadwinner’s central character is 11 year-old girl named Parvana who lives with her younger brother, father and older Brother. Parvana’s father had faced gruesome battles and as a teacher, has now being reduced to writing and reading simple letters. The entire life of this family stands on the shoulders of the father which plunges this family into despair the moment Parvana’s father is captured. Despair gives Parvana a reason to rise and take a stand, she begins to showcase her bravery and determination to support her family. It is Parvana’s will to survive and the strength she showcases that is the crux of the film.
Through a mesmerizing narrative that highlights the strength of a child, The Breadwinner illustrates the unbreakable bond and love in a family, as well as the importance of identity, justice, and everlasting hope. It is a captivating saga that showcases an individual’s ability to imagine and survive even when the odds are stacked against them.
Life changes drastically when Parvana’s father, without warning, is taken from the family, leaving him as the primary breadwinner. In the area they reside, Parvana’s family is subject to extreme restrictions. Women are not able to go outside without the accompaniment of a male family member. Parvana’s mother and sister are confined to the safety of their home, which makes basic chores like shopping and fetching water nearly impossible.
In reaction to this predicament, Parvana decides to make a bold move. In order to work, she chops off her hair, puts on male clothing, and takes on a new persona. In her disguise, she can freely roam the city and like her father, she makes money from reading and performing other odd tasks. Although her new reality is hardly safe, she is able to newly obtain her family’s financial support which is her primary motivation for self-sustaining her new lifestyle.
While living the new routine of her altered reality, Parvana encounters Shauzia, a girl of her age, also living as a male. Together, they weave dreams, laughter, and the struggles of everyday existence. Shauzia longs to escape and seek the ocean, while Parvana spends all of her time trying to find a way to bring her father home.
In the film, Parvana narrates a fanciful tale in which a young boy named Suleyman goes on a journey to defeat a strange beast that has taken the seeds from his village. This plot element serves to mirror Parvana’s own quest. For Parvana, Suleyman’s story enables her to grapple with fear, grief, and hope, all the while trying to soothe her younger brother.
Time brings for Parvana greater challenges. She continues to ‘work’ as a boy, comes within a hair’s breadth of being discovered, and keeps her hope alive with stories. Through it all, she somehow becomes even more steely determined. Parvana comes to an understanding that even the bleakest of circumstances, one person can make a difference, and even more so, that it can be done with love and courage.
In the end, the film has Parvana attempting to piece her family together and has her audience walk away with a sense of quiet victory and the absolute belief that love and purpose can amplify even the softest of voices.
Characters and Performances
A hero of the story is, of course, Parvana, a girl of impeccable courage and an intellect to match. It is her journey that carries the storyline for most of the film. She earns every ounce of admiration for her brave actions, for despite all odds, she stands tall and filters her love to the family, and for these reasons, we can say that she is an outright hero.Fattema resonates as a powerful embodiment of a mother enduring a shattered heart yet feeling resilient. The depth of profound silences with her daughter, underlining her belief in the mother’s hope, destiny’s, virtues and the strength of the unseen arms that linger about her.
Merely a daughter, Soraya, Parvana’s sister, supports the family in a specific capacity, evidencing how every single person in the house dovetails with the goings-on of the rest.
Shauzia’s friendship with Parvana is a thaw from the rigid grip of the squalid world that encircles them as wished hope that is freezing and harsh to the unfiltered reality. Shauzia epitomizes life and the other lens, with the warmth of sun penetrating the clouds, in the film.
In Parvana’s fictionalized story, the boy, Suleyman, serves as a tangible character a few crystals of which are spun to reflect Parvana’s world. The enchanted surrealistic odyssey symbolizes the waves of emotions and the growth of Parvana, as also the endurance that is sown inside her, for the world.
The film is sandwiched with an affinity of the authentic unexaggerated breath and warmth of the cast, dancing to the emotional strings without clutching at it violence. The lips are in total surrender and the heart sings life serving as a galangal to the fury.
Direction and Animation
The Breadwinner is encased in a style that is at once tender and suggestive. Relating to the heart of the scene, the blurring point of the minute detail in the realistic animated life renders emotion anchored to the story with the supple tones of the backdrop which circle the borderline of the action.
The animation corresponding with the rest of the world’s Suleyman, especially Parvana’s story fantasy slices, is captured in a distinct, separate style of paper cut animation. This pours a texture of depth in also differentiating between the imagination, and reality, intertwined.
Nora Twomey directs the film with both care and force. In her work, character challenges are, at no point, regarded as sensationalized, but are instead viewed as an event which brings to the foreground, an individual’s strength and the humanity and ability to advance. The pacing is, on the whole, equitable, with highlights being both emotionally impactful, and gentle instances which invite one to think.
Major Themes
The Breadwinner contains important and profound messages relevant to people of every culture and many ages
The Connections of Family: This story is centered on the devotion and love of one girl to her family. Parvana displayed the love which she bears not only for her father, but for her mother and siblings as well, driving her every action which demonstrated the bond that is shared, and the responsibility that is borne.
Bravery and self- identity: The film demonstrates how self- identity can at times, be the result of how one looks, but also the decisions made about themselves. Parvana’s decision to change her self- image is not a mere disguise, but a decision of not only self- assertion, but bravery.
The Art of Storytelling: The film is a celebration to the art of storytelling. It shows Parvana gaining courage, providing solace to others, and imagining a better world to live in, through the stories.
Resilience and Hope: The Breadwinner chooses to center its narrative around hope and optimism regardless of the obstacles its characters must endure. The film portrays how, even in the face of adversity, kindness, imagination, and inner strength can illuminate one’s path.
Reception
The Breadwinner, receiving critical acclaim for its animation, emotional depth, and storytelling, went on to win multiple accomplishments for its artistry while also being nominated for various awards. The film was praised for its honest and, at the same time, nuanced portrayal of the life of a child in adverse circumstances, both by the audience as well as critics.
Many were impressed by the profound emotional weight and aesthetic beauty the film carries. The film calls upon the audience to empathize, reflect, and appreciate the strength that lies in simple acts of love and care.
Conclusion
The Breadwinner is more than just an animated film; it is a profound and timeless narrative about love, bravery, and the importance of keeping hope alive. Through the perspective of Parvana, we see a world full of difficulty, but also full of kindness, friendship, and a promise for a brighter future.
Appropriate for older children, teenagers, and the adult audience, The Breadwinner is a film whose value and depth can be appreciated on multiple levels and which captivates the empathy and imagination towards the willfulness and zeal of human heart. It’s a film with a unique sedative quality and a moving lyricism which makes it compulsory to watch for anyone who appreciates the value of the soul and the tales which emanate from it.
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