Iqbal is about an Asian boy who gets sold by his father to a small carpentry production company in which child labour is supported. His "master" is a cruel man, imposing a ridiculous behaviour catalogue with strict charges. The children, about 5-10 years of age, have to work all day and they´re not allowed to go to toilet while at work, let alone visit their parents. Iqbal soon realizes that this is a massive injustice, especially when a member of the (unindentified) country´s Communist and Anti-child labour party takes photographs of the children. Iqbal manages to escape a few times and gets sold to another master as a consequence. However, he improves his working skills and gets a reputation as a hard-working rebel.
The movie Iqbal is a well made movie with a very important subject: Child labour in Third World countries. The acting -especially the child actors- is amazing but the plot isn´t as strong. Sometimes the dialogue lines are too cliché-like and a kind of simple. The movie is loosely based on a true story, but I guess there are a lot of other Iqbals in the world right now, fighting for Human Rights. I recommend the book No Logo by Naomi Klein on the subject.
Important subject, well-made but not really amazing movie.
7 out of 10 points.
