Jamilia

Jamilia presents Kyrgyzstan as a beautiful, if also deeply patriarchal, country. To the women in French filmmaker Aminatou Echard's documentary, marriage feels more like a cultural obligation than a union forged from love. The men do the choosing and the women follow along. They're also encouraged to marry young and to eschew higher education. Some women look to Jamilia, the heroine of Chingiz Aitmatov's widely-read 1958 novella, as a model for a better kind of life, although others see her story as cautionary. When her husband goes off to war, Jamilia elopes with her true love. "She did the right thing for herself, but not for others," notes a 30-year-old woman who declined a marriage proposal from a Muslim because her family disapproved (she would have also had to relocate); instead, she entered into an arranged marriage that ended in divorce. Nurzat, a 37-year-old laboratory worker, provides the income for her family, including three children, since her husband doesn't work, but her mother-in-law calls the shots. "Life is very hard on girls," Nurzat laments, adding that she's grateful she had sons. A Muslim woman says that she admires Jamilia’s resolution, but "I couldn’t live like Jamilia," as she herself doesn't believe that Allah would approve of her actions. Echard shot Jamilia in the 1:1 or square aspect ratio, resulting in black borders on each side of the frame. The Super-8 images are grainy and deeply saturated, like faded Polaroids. She also opts for static shots and voiceover sound, which lends the proceedings a dreamily nostalgic if also somewhat detached feel. The sentiments, however, will surely hit home for anyone sympathetic to women denied the full autonomy that they deserve. "If men were sensible enough," concludes one speaker, "there'd be no Jamilias." Recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)