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Austin Movies

In 'Beauty Academy,' political change starts in the salon
by John DeFore

There's a surprising lack of editorializing in the documentary "The Beauty Academy of Kabul," which depicts a scene likely to inspire mixed feelings. Going in, viewers might not know whether to expect sarcasm or sympathy. After the credits roll, they still might be unsure just what filmmaker Liz Mermin thinks of her subjects. But they will have seen something pretty interesting. Read the full review

TO SUM UP
After the Taliban's fall, six beauticians opened Afghanistan's first beauty school. Including three Afghan-Americans returning home for the first time in 20 years, the group set out to teach the latest hair-cutting techniques to Afghan woman trying to overcome their oppressive surroundings.

FILM FACTS ...

Shadow Distribution

'The Beauty Academy of Kabul'

Director: Liz Mermin
Starring: Mary MacMakin, Terri Grauel, Patricia O'Connor
Run time: 74 minutes
Release date: March 24, 2006
Rating: Not rated; contains references to war violence and images of guns.

On the web
Official movie site

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READ THE REVIEW

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: B-
"These women's hearts are in the right place and so is the movie's."

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Austin American-Statesman: 3 of 5 stars
"The opportunity to meet these women is the film's main draw. Not only do they offer a fresh account of their nation's long nightmare, giving first-person life to what most Americans know only from wartime news reports, they provide a glimpse of how a soul might survive such circumstances."

Read the full review

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