I should have heeded my own red-flag warning and not wasted my time on this movie. What's the red flag? The star of the movie is also the writer and the director. The end result of such a troika is usually little more than blatant ego gratification, and this movie doesn't fail to fulfill that goal.
In addition to the glorification of the main character, seemingly unrelated characters and scenes pop in and out, with little or no background or transition. Maybe it all would have been united into a cohesive story by the time it painfully dragged itself to a conclusion, but I shut it down after 90 minutes and never had the benefit of whatever that conclusion might have been. And couldn't care less, BTW.
It's unfortunate that IMDb doesn't have a way to require reviewers to disclose their financial association with the film that they are reviewing. If such disclosures were possible, it's likely that many 10-star reviewers would be flagged as shills. And that includes the 10-star reviewers of The Black Tulip.
The Black Tulip
2010
Drama / Family
The Black Tulip
2010
Drama / Family
7.1Keywords: woman director
Plot summary
When Taliban authorities deny the turning over of Osama Bin Laden post 911, U.S. Forces rout their leadership from Kabul and free its Afghan citizens from the brutal grip of spiritual henchman Mullah Mohammed Omar and that of his dark-age Sharia led leadership. Seizing upon this new and volatile window of freedom, matriarch Farishta Mansouri along with her husband Hadar normalize their family's efforts by turning her deceased father's Soviet destroyed bookstore into a restaurant. A place of hope called "The Poet's Corner" along with an open microphone, a small stage and an invitation for all Afghans to read their poetry, voice is now given to the voiceless. Both men and women now have a safe, equal and inviting place to tell their stories and to sing their songs. But like a lightening rod, these new voices of freedom attract the darkest, lingering factional Taliban elements who then target the Mansouri family in the most heinous ways imaginable. In their efforts to silence the platform of freedom, Farishta and Hadar Mansouri are made a dire example by that of the Taliban through their desire to live freely, safely and with their own self-determination. Ultimately overcoming overwhelming odds the Taliban leadership is given a lesson of their own.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
Director
Top cast
Movie Reviews
Just another ego trip.
A riveting and emotional look into the triumph of the human spirit
This movie grabbed me from the very beginning, and held on tightly till the end. HIGHLY recommended.
The art direction, casting, screenplay, and music were all superb. It's refreshing to see a foreign film that has all the important elements of a major studio release these days.
If you want to learn more about Afghanistan and the struggles going on there right now between everyday people and the Taliban, this is a wonderful film to check out. It blends an Afghan family's story with that of the insurgent group to produce a very real look at that country.
I'm not sure why it's got so many low ratings!
Breathtaking scenes, exceptional music and amazing story!
This is the first time a movie about Afghanistan, created by Afghans and shot entirely in Afghanistan is being considered for the Oscars. I truly enjoyed watching this captivating movie which does not fail to show Afghanistan in it's entirety.
The scenes were simply fantastic and breathtaking. Many of my friends who have recently traveled there say it mimics Afghanistan exactly the way it is today: modern, classy, evolving and closer to freedom than ever before.
The music was beautiful and touching at the same time. Never have I seen music like that in my whole life and this film shows that music is a very big part of the Afghan culture.
The acting was superb, particularly that of the young gal playing the bride to be. There were parts in the film which were also quite funny and made the theater burst into laughter---nicely done.
Overall, I gave this film a 10/10 because so much was risked in making this film and despite every challenge faced by the crew, they managed to finish it up and give Afghanistan something to be proud of: That is, the world will know that Afghans are more than uncivilized people living in caves---