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This movie is the proof that the world is becoming a sick and dumb place

Beautiful, moving film.

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

I really liked Afghan Star for a couple reasons. Firstly, I liked seeing how something like music, and this TV show, can bring such a torn country so close together. There are what seems like countless ethnic groups in Afghanistan, and most of the singers were from a different one each. Even with their differences, they were all supportive of each other, and their fans seemed to follow this behavior as well. Many people, regardless of origin, would always gather together to watch the show on Friday nights. Another thing I really liked is that since it was a documentary, it showed you the country exactly how it is, it didn't have any backstory or anything like that. Consequently, it showed me that Afghanistan has a pretty cold climate. In all the media I have seen involving Afghanistan, like the news, and images of the war, it always seems like a desert, with little to no rainfall or cold. The opening scene of this movie was snowy mountains. Another thing that I found very interesting about this film was the role of religion. In most Middle Eastern countries, music is banned. When music in Afghanistan was unbanned, you could tell that some devoutly religious, people still frowned upon it. Because of this, I was very surprised to see the first place winner, Rafi, walk into a mosque and receive a blessing for good luck in his performance. His religious affiliation seemed to condone his actions. Also, I think I remember the women being treated much more unfairly than the men. I feel like they received far more criticism and hate than the men that also sang.

This was such a well done documentary that gave me a completely new perspective on the country of Afghanistan and its people. I cannot believe that music was banned in Afghanistan for about 20 years and only recently (the early 2000s) was it finally allowed again. Afghan Star is the first and only singing talent competition TV show that Afghanistan has ever had. It is such a big deal because not only does it involve singing, but it also is the first time that many Afghans have been exposed to democracy and been able to take advantage of it. The voting for Afghan Star is all done through SMS messages that the people send from their mobile phones which is also cool because I had never realized or thought about the idea that everyone in Afghanistan would have a cell phone. I thought it was crazy how when one of the competitors, Setara, danced on national TV everyone freaked out, and men were calling her "loose" and saying that she should die. Clearly the society is still very conservative and rigid when it comes to this, and while they may accept and enjoy singing, dancing is something that the Afghan people are definitely not ready for. Overall, I would give this film four out of five stars.

It's late 2007 and season 3 of Afghan Star, a singing contest on Afghanistan television. It attracts thousands of hopefuls and even three female singers. It would eventually be watched by as many as eleven million viewers.It starts a little slow. It feels scattered as the movie figures out who the most interesting contestants are. The production is reasonable considering the jerry-rigged nature of Afghan Star. The most compelling story is Setara when she starts dancing after getting voted out. It is the most compelling moment in the movie. The shock of everybody around her is the jolt that elevates this movie. This is a great slice of life documentary.

Afghan Star is an interesting, fun, sad documentary taking the audience to the reality in Afghanistan beyond war. I loved the texture behind the "Afghan Star" show theme in the documentary which reveals the multi-culture, values and perspectives of people in Afghanistan; pressure of Taliban; transformation of the country in years; and the universal feelings beyond society in an entertaining way. War and pressure is still in the air. Tanks are part of the screen shots, showing up in the corners, just to remind war despite the pop culture, gripping people's minds and feelings to escape the reality they live in. Great case study on pop culture!