Afghan girls in American Army

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fghan girls in American Army by umar-akmalLadies,” my email began, “a Tina Fey movie about our favorite Area of Operations? Attention must be paid.” The message went to some of the women I had worked with at the Pentagon during my stint on the Pakistan desk. A movie about the last decade-plus of war starring a woman was rare enough, but a funny movie about it headlined by an actress we all admire was exciting. Before the four of us met up on the film’s opening night, I did a little homework to prepare for my cinematic experience. What I found puzzled me. Review after review in the major national papers and Hollywood weeklies panned the film. It’s not surprising, of course, for critics to criticize a movie, but something about the language reviewers chose and the problems they had with the film sounded hollow. In describing the journey that Kim Baker, Tina Fey’s character, takes during her years covering Afghanistan as a reporter, the New York Times said she “generally gets her groove back.” The review also called an Afghan official who makes “advances” on her “goofily forward.” Rolling Stone (inaccurately, as it turns out) reported that to save her beau, Baker “puts out for the future Pakistan Prime Minister.” The reviewer in Variety accused the film of being too “playful” and avoiding hard issues. Many complained that it wasn’t funny enough, while a description of the movie as essentially a romantic comedy seemed unlikely.