Be warned, much of the footage is shot on location, very realistic, not your Disney type films, it show the daily life and struggle of a little boy who is a Refugee and also sick. If the world understands what's happened over there, we might be a little more compassionate for the people who suffered through this, especially the children. There's still time left to do something, something for the children and their cries for help.
28 Reviews
Children in time of War
eartha-9275627 September 2021
To my mind, it is a fully realized cinematic work of art, a film that has been carefully composed in every single scene in order to provide a unique and meditative, but powerful watching experience. Without doubt, any viewer with an open heart and mind will be fully immersed into the world and lives of the young children portrayed in this movie.
What it is like to live with Thalassemia
maggot-794566 October 2021
Like the main character in this film, I was also born with thalassemia, a blood disorder which requires transfusions every other week to keep me healthy and alive. When I get transfused, the whole process takes seven or eight hours, which means I have to do a lot of "working around" to fit it in my schedule. Also, on transfusion days, I am given several pre-meds which cause me to become very drowsy and keep me from eating properly or functioning for basically an entire day. There are a lot of complications associated with thalassemia, especially transfusion-related iron overload which requires a daily drug treatment, and sometimes it can be scary knowing that excess iron will damage my heart and liver if I can't get it out. But thanks to the expert care I receive from experienced and knowledgeable doctors, I am able to lead a fulfilling and rewarding life.
Realistic and Poetic
sandrakatra15 August 2016
If you watch the news on daily basis, I'm sure you will see some news about the Kurdish people and their fight against ISIS, there are also many documentaries on the subject, and I have seen many of them, but I have noticed many of these documentaries only give the big picture, they talk about the politic, give number, geographical location, etc. What i loved about this documentary and found it so interesting is how the director take the viewer inside the refugees camp, give a glimpse of what is like to be a refugee, to be a Kurdish refugee, and more than a politic, the film is about the daily life of refugees, their need which are simple, but they are incapable of having, the boy is sick and want to be cured, but the problem is he cannot find treatment where he is, his need is to have a good health, a house, a roof over his head, protected from the heat and from the cold, simple needs. While watching the films I was reminded of the great Italian Neo-realism cinema of 40s and 50s, it is realistic and poetic at the same time.
One of the best Documentary on what it fell ike to be a Refugess
mergapan11 August 2016
This film was shown at the Anthology Film Archives here in New York presented by Jonas Mekas himself, fore more than 1 hour and 40 minutes everyone in the theater was quite, what is great and beautiful about this film is the simplicity of it, the composition of the shot are beautiful, the camera never move, except when it is inside a car or a motorcycle, the sound is very rich, and pace is slow, the filmmaker show the films as if from the POV of a refuge in the camp seeing everything, because of that everything is presented as it is, the editing, use of Music and the voice over are simple and not intended for manipulation, just 1 hour and 40 minute in the live of a little boy who only has one wish and that is to live as the title suggest, rather a simple wish, but hard for him because he is sick and must get treatment before it is too late.
The never ending suffering of the Kurds
iasia-7729416 October 2021
Around 50 million Kurds are divided up to six different countries, they are the largest ethnic group in the world without their own country. Isolated, genocide committed against them, their langue banned, they survive as best they can. This film is a testimony to their struggle, especially the Kurdish refugees, the children who suffers most.
Fantastic
damunanredsaza4 February 2020
Masterpiece
gdaedfe20 April 2018
I had a chance to watch this film two years ago when it was show here in New York by the New Filmmaker. It seem like a simple film, but it not, it is very rich, what make is great is the simplicity of it, every image is carefully composed and planned in advance. What you see is the truth, simple story of a boy who only want to live. Never forgot this film and this boy, Shndar, and I'm very happy to hear he is safe now in Ireland, thanks to this film and the effort of the filmmakers, he is can get required medical treatment. I look forward seeing more film from Mr. Kardozi, an emerging talent.
Elegant film
ldaasor8 September 2016
I would use the word "Elegant" to describe this film because it is optically a beautiful film, I wish one day it could be released on Blu-ray, the version I watched was online, not full HD quality, but still I found it very beautiful and poetic, like other users mentioned in their reviews, the film is very slow paced, it shows events, daily life and struggle of a little boy in a Refugee Camp, his life is simple, so the film is simple, the camera sees and shows what he sees and show, it capture life the ways it is, without manipulation, which is very rare to find in today's films, that is why I found it so moving and so elegant.
Narration of the films is brilliant
wendyalen17 August 2016
One of the best thing about this films is the narration, the voice-over in the film, we never see the boy talk directly to the camera, but at times we hear him speak, in poetic manner, and that is what make the narrations so difference from the traditional style of narration in which is to have a dedicated narrator read a script which is dubbed onto the audio track, but there is no script in this film, the boy talk and the sound are matched poetically to the image. The narrator does appears on camera and have all necessarily knowledge of the subject matter which is living in a camp, the tragedy of the Kurdish people and their wish for freedom, he talk honestly about his own desire and wish to get a better health and find a treatment.
Simple and Beautiful film
salimali-4384014 August 2016
I came upon watching this film by chance after I started my MA thesis on the Kurdish Struggle for Independent, out of the dozen documentaries that I have watched so far on the Kurdish issue and Kurdistan, this one is by far the best, especially when it comes to tacking the issue of Kurdish refugees and the Kurdish struggle in Rojava and their fight against ISIS, what I liked about the film is how simple it is; the filmmaker show everything from the perspective of the little boy, what he see and hear, we see and hear, we hear his wishes for a peaceful future, end of war, the right to study, read and write in Kurdish in school, for the Kurds to rule themselves, and unification of all four part of Kurdistan, these are in term of his political wish, but the film is not a political film, it is a about the live of a boy who is sick and wish to have a good health and get a treatment for his sickness, only this boy happen to be a Kurd, who live in a Refugee camps and cannot find this treatment. That is the richness of this film, it work on many levels and rich in term or narrative, but simple and beautiful like all works of Arts should be.
Great Documentary
mara_kara6 August 2016
I watched this documentary at the sideline of the Cannes Film Festival in the Student Section, it tell the story of a little boy by the name of Shendar who is sick and must have a surgery, every day that passes and he does not have this surgery, his health deteriorate for the worse. All the scenes are shot on and around a Refugees camps and we are always with Shendar, he talk about his dream, his wishes for peace, tolerance and also to have a country like others, for Shendar is a Kurd and like 40 million others Kurds he does not have a country, but the film is not about politic, nor the struggle of the Kurdish people and their fight for freedom agaisnt ISIS, it is a simple truthful story about a little boy who just want to live, his only wish as he keep saying "To have a Good health and Live". Very good documentary, truthful.
From inside the Camps
ollauida10 October 2016
Most of thus documentary take place inside Refugee camp, it shows what life is like for these refuges, most of the time they are inside their tens watching Television, especially when its hot in the middle of the after in summer, or when at night, everyone of them gather in their tent and watch some kind of a TV shows that look like a soap opera. There are times when the boy and his brother go outside of the camp, one scene is very memorable when they go to picnic and he talk about his feeling for his homeland, how green it was and how we went on picnic there, they are happy when they are outside the camp, not so much inside. I like the way the film show both life outside and inside the camp, and all from the way this little boy sees it.
A Child View
egdads25 April 2018
What I love about this Documentary is everything is shown through the eyes of a child, even the camera angles most of the time is low, for half an hour, you see the world from the point of view of this boy who live in a camp. what he see and hear is what we see and hear, nothing is exaggerated, very simple and beautiful film.
With Yilmaz Guney Yol, this film is a gem
kuylyklyuuyyuk8 September 2018
Sad but hopfull
hukkftytk20 November 2018
A sad but hopeful film. Sad because of the kids losing his life slowly in a refugee camps with the world ignoring him, but hopeful because the kid is full of hope, full of life and desire to life. Despite his hardship and his sickness, he is full of life.
Kurdistan as a tragedy
urtyrtfghfgh11 July 2018
I watched this film two years ago at a Festival, never forget it. Back then everyone was talking about ISIS and the brave Kurdish Female fighters taking on ISIS, now very few people talk about ISIS, it has become history. This film is a testament to those time, never to be forgotten.
Every frame a poem
hdfhnb5 September 2018
I love this simple film, very frame is like a poem, simple, very simple, but that is what make so beautiful, it is hard to achieve such simplicity in any art, especially in film. Much planning and thought went into each framing, the composition, the sound design. And the story, it is full of life and humanity.
10 out of 10
luyiuklyuy23 July 2018
Children in time of war.
drtjghjh11 August 2018
This isn't an easy watch, but it's must, highly recommend nonetheless. I watch many documentaries, rarely seen such an insightful and comprehensive portrait of children in time of war. Unlike most other documentaries on the subject, we get to hear first hand accounts from a child who lived in a war zone, and kept the memory of the war with him as he struggle living in a camp.
Mediation on Life and Death
ngghhdfgfdg25 May 2018
This is one of the Documentary that I have seen on the life and struggle of children in the times of wars. The film shows three days and nights in the life of a Kurdish refugee by the name of Shndar, he has some kind of a rare blood disease, and only can get a treatment for it in another country, In one of the European countries. Despite having to live in the middle of a war, in a refugee camp, with a disease, still, he has hope for the future.
Truthfull
hgtbdgtghtfre10 July 2018
Honest and Truthful
jebcalhim16 August 2016
I have see a few documentaries about Refugees, I found most of them political, bias, with pro or anti Refugees sentiment, some of these very sentimental, that is until I came upon watching this documentary by chance and so far it is the best one that I have seen, it is an honest and truthful documentary that shows what it is to be a young boy living in a refugee camp, the camera show the daily life of the little boy as it is with no sentimentally or bias or sympathy asked from a viewer, there are moments of sadness, and moment of joy, just as it is in everyone's life. I love the film because it is honest, it is slow paced, but I guess that is how life is in those refugees camps, everyday the same thing repeat day after day, they are waiting for something, to go back to their homeland or a better future, but until then, they must wait, and the films captures beautifully those moments, days and weeks of waiting.
Plight of Kurdish Refugees from Rojava
gasfsd25 February 2019
In the past few years, there have been many good films about the Kurds in Rojava (East Kurdistan) and Bakur (North Kurdistan), I Want to Live (Karzan Kardozi) and Zer (Kazim Öz) is among the top two that I have seen so far. Hope to see more films in the future about Rojava and Bakur.
Kurdish struggle for freedom
daraalan13 August 2016
Kurdish population number more than 40 millions and they have no country of their own, their homeland is Kurdistan which is divided between Iraq, Iran, Syria and Turkey and they always fought for their cultural right and their freedom. I first came to know the Kurds two years ago after watching the news about ISIS attack on the Kurds and Yazidi people, and I was amazed how brave these Kurds were, especially their women in defeating ISIS and establishing their own self-government in North Syria or what is known as Rojava. So when this film was shown here in the States on IFC channel, I had to see it and it was worth it, it is not your typical documentary film, the filmmaker is truthful in showing life of these Kurdish refugees as it is, but the film also refer a great deal to the Kurdish struggle for a homeland, I was taken by the fact that the little boy, Shndar always refer to the four part of Kurdistan as North, South, East and West, and not Turkey's Kurdistan or Syrian Kurdistan, it is very moving, the fact is their might not be a Kurdistan right now on the map, but you can see and feel it in the heart, dream and hope of Shndar and other refugees. Must see film.
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