As Tina Fey embarks on the journey of doing justice to Kim Barker’s memoir, "The Taliban Shuffle: The Strange Days in Afghanistan and Pakistan," we see her doing what she does best, making us laugh amidst the most doleful of times. Playing the role of an ordinary news reporter, Kim Baker, whose only way of bragging is to say that she indulges in "domestic reportage," Kim is like all of us. With a boyfriend who is miles away, a job that is unsatisfying and a life that she wants to change, Kim takes up the opportunity to cover the news story on the war in Afghanistan.

Her journey throughout the movie, the war zone, and the campsite is filled with relatable nuances, humor and emotions. Her journey in the war zone reflects the conflicts in her personal life; be it about her cheating boyfriend, her confusion about physical intimacy, or her constant struggle to find not only a story that will turn her career around, but will do justice in a world where women are facing constant discrimination.

Along the way, she builds friendships that she never knew she would, jealousies with a fellow reporter that she called her best friend, Tanya, played by Margot Robbie, and a relationship with a photographer that gives her strength and support. Fey is shown fighting injustice and sexist views as she dresses in a blue burqa to cover a news story and is told that she is now in a "blue prison". She exclaims, "I feel so pretty, I don’t even want to vote." The subtleties of emotional references shown through the relationships she builds cannot be missed, and that is what, in my opinion, makes this movie a beautiful one.

On the flip side, the movie can be perceived as a little chaotic, since it deals with a lot of matters, and shifts its focus from one issue to another. But overall, although the film is an adaptation of a book, and we all know how that goes and what the audience really feels about them, I feel that "Whiskey Tango Foxtrot" is an original film. There do not exist many movies that touch upon subjects like the plight of women, while delivering a sense of humor within them. With Tina Fey doing justice to her role and making the audience giggle even amidst tears, this movie made me appreciate Tina in a new light, although I do wish that the movie juggled between the subjects and themes more clearly.

Set in Afghanistan and a little bit of New York, going back and forth amongst the years 2003 to 2006, the film serves the purpose of not only showing the conditions of the war with Taliban, but Kim’s and at large, women’s journey towards equality. The film provides an unbiased and true picture of the war zone and camp sights, since the movie is an adaptation of a word-of-mouth encounter. The music in the movie is a particular work of art, since the songs played in the background are beautiful and appropriate for each situation. I would give this movie 3 stars out of 5 stars.

Ratings :

1 Star : Poor

2 Stars : Fair

3 Stars : Good

4 Stars : Excellent

5 Stars : Extraordinary