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The Beauty Academy of Kabul

Released May 4, 2004 1h 14m Documentary List
87% Tomatometer 53 Reviews 57% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
With backing from American cosmetics industries, a group of stylists travels to post-Taliban Afghanistan to teach women about their hair and using makeup.
The Beauty Academy of Kabul

What to Know

Critics Consensus

There's nothing frivolous about beauty school when hearing about the individual lives of these women in Afghanistan, and the contrast between them and the idealistic beauticians from America.

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Critics Reviews

View All (53) Critics Reviews
Andrea Gronvall Chicago Reader Most of the students had suffered or witnessed horrific abuses and crimes under the Taliban, yet the film shows two fatuous U.S. instructors who clearly missed the sensitivity training. Dec 15, 2006 Full Review Andrew O'Hehir Salon.com a spiny, puzzling and highly entertaining film, and whatever you go into it thinking, you're likely to come out thinking something else. Dec 15, 2006 Full Review Michael Booth Denver Post Any film that raises this many interesting questions is worth seeing, though Beauty Academy never goes quite deep enough to become essential. Rated: 2.5/4 Jul 14, 2006 Full Review Jonathan Kiefer Sacramento News & Review Rated: 3/5 Aug 7, 2008 Full Review Ken Hanke Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) Captures the essence of Americans' sense of empowerment and innate goodness -- and our cultural myopia. Rated: 4/5 Mar 14, 2007 Full Review Maria Garcia Film Journal International It is that lack of small-minded judgment which distinguishes The Beauty Academy of Kabul and which makes it thoughtful, yet so much fun to watch. Mar 1, 2007 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (39) audience reviews
Audience Member Pretty straight-forward watch. I thought the most poignant part were the two hairdressers who fled Afghanistan in the 1980s and were back to teach at the school. The Americans are portrayed as obnoxious and ignorant, but I don't know how much of that is a result of editing. I read "Kabul Beauty School" by Debbie Rodriguez earlier this year and I wasn't shocked to see that she was the most obnoxious American. There's been some controversy over the accuracy of her book and I thought the movie was a good addition to the stuff in the book. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/23/23 Full Review Audience Member What is best about this documentary is that it is not only about a group of women helping another group of women half way around the world. It is about the daily life of this Afghan women, how there are trying to have a shred of normality in a country that it is in chaos. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Audience Member We are so blessed to live in the USA. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/19/23 Full Review Audience Member Amazing, brave Afghan women. Crazy, entitled American women. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/25/23 Full Review Audience Member This is a great documentary! I highly recommend it. One part of the film that upset me was how some of the American instructors spoke to the women with a sense of Western ignorance. There's a reason these women can't "rebel" as much as you would want them to; they could be killed. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/15/23 Full Review Audience Member Give this little doc a shot. There are some grimace-worthy cultural difference moments between the Americans and the Pakistani women that make for good viewing. In the end it's all about sisterhood and true beauty. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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The Beauty Academy of Kabul

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Movie Info

Synopsis With backing from American cosmetics industries, a group of stylists travels to post-Taliban Afghanistan to teach women about their hair and using makeup.
Director
Liz Mermin
Producer
Liz Mermin, Nigel Noble
Distributor
Wellspring Media
Production Co
Noble Enterprise
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 4, 2004, Original
Rerelease Date (Theaters)
Mar 24, 2006
Release Date (DVD)
Dec 19, 2006
Box Office (Gross USA)
$225.3K
Runtime
1h 14m