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Bookmark this pageThe Kite Runner (2007)
Director: Marc Forster
Synopsis
‘The Kite Runner’ is the film of the international bestselling book which tells the story of Amir, a well-to-do boy from the Wazir Akbar Khan district of Kabul, who is haunted by the guilt of betraying his childhood friend Hassan, the son of his father's Hazara servant. It is set against a backdrop of tumultuous events, from the fall of the monarchy in Afghanistan through the Soviet invasion, the mass exodus of refugees to Pakistan and the United States, and the Taliban regime.
Movie review
From Time Out London
Adapted from the best-selling novel by Afghan-born American writer Khaled Hosseini, this accessible, deftly-directed and moving tale of childhood regret and adult atonement courses through three decades of war-torn Afghan history in personal terms. In 1978, preceding the Soviet invasion, privileged seven-year-old Kabul boy Amir (Zekeria Ebrahmi) witnesses the rape of his friend and fellow kite-flyer, lower-class Hazara servant Hassan (the expressive and contained Ahmad Khan Mahmidzada) by the malevolent Assef. Confused and angered by his own powerlessness, guilt, and shame, Amir frames his erstwhile companion for theft and is further admonished by the morally pure, loyal and self-abnegating behaviour of his victim, something that troubles the aspirant-writer Amir through his 20-odd years of exile in the US. In the present, a visit to Pakistan to see his dead father’s dying friend, offers news of Hassan’s fate, and prompts the older, now-married Amir (Khalid Abdalla) to a dangerous visit to his now Taliban-controlled home.
Notwithstanding the inevitable tendency of individual stories set against momentous national upheavals to conflate and simplify historical events, Marc ‘Finding Neverland’ Forster’s film achieves minor miracles within the bounds of his broadly conventional narrative. His sober approach allows a surprising level of complexity in his film’s wider interest in themes of guilt, displacement, honour and conflicting traditions, while his sensitivity to the emotional responses of his characters – both adult and child – is never overwhelmed nor upstaged by his incorporation of challenging dramatic scenes (such as a startlingly brutal stoning of an adulterous couple in a Kabul stadium). Likewise, the film’s belief in the power of redemption and its subtle assertion of the need for moral courage in personal (or political) conflict, is never allowed to get in the way of its boldly told, intelligent, informed and affecting story.
Author: Wally Hammond
Time Out London Issue 1948: December 19 2007-January 1 2008
User reviews of this film
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- ExE said...
- Posted on Feb 17 2008 19:43 An amazing movie, very moving. I broke down and cried near the end of the movie.
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- kim said...
- Posted on Feb 13 2008 11:26 this...is...a really G-R-E-A-T film!!!!!!!! i love it!!! i even cried when i saw the movie...i can't explain thoroughly how i feel about the story but it moved me!!!..i just love it!!..
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- negena said...
- Posted on Feb 11 2008 19:22 im gna c dis film. looking at the reviews you fellow people have written i am extremely excited to see this film =D
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- bob said...
- Posted on Feb 05 2008 14:48 A professional piece of work but it seemed to me to represent a world that American film makers would wish to believe in, rather than anything approaching reality. It had some Rambo-esque overtones that were as unnecessary as they were unlikely.
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- Annie said...
- Posted on Feb 01 2008 14:39 I saw this film with my mum the other night and we both loved it. There is a whole world out there going on that it is all too easy to forget about in our day to day lives. I would reccommend that all upper school children should see this as part of their education.
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- YOY;WANT;IT said...
- Posted on Jan 30 2008 17:04 any questions?
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- U;WANT;IT said...
- Posted on Jan 30 2008 17:02 Hello. I really really enjoyed this film. At first i said (as i am only 13) i didnt want to go and see it as it would be a boring film. I was extremely wrong. IT WAS AMAZING! I cried and found the story moving! Highly recommended...!!
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- nash said...
- Posted on Jan 29 2008 20:40 I highly recommend to see the film. The story is sad and very moving. I think it should be compulsory for teenagers of this country to see movies like that. There is definitely another world outside UK.
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- Jay said...
- Posted on Jan 29 2008 15:37 My husband read the book 2 years ago, I haven't but we both love the film. One of the best films we've seen in recent years. Very moving, well acted, beautifully and sensitively filmed. Makes a change from a lot of junk being made these days! We're going to see it again next week.
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- I_am_Stevo said...
- Posted on Jan 28 2008 13:28 It was well shot, well acted and thought provoking. However, the film lacked something for me although I've not read the book. The film is not designed for entertainment value and should not be a 12a due to graphic and harrowing scenes. I also felt it was a tad on the long side. If I could I'd give it 3 out of 5
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- Jionkan said...
- Posted on Jan 25 2008 12:07 Good adaptation of the novel, I agree. The good news is they got the "feel" of the film right, although they have left out some of the key scenes at the end, that were most upsetting to me when I read the book. Why they have done that, remains unclear to me. It would not have prolonged the film very much. In a nutshell: good film, the book is (much) better, though!
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- Brenda said...
- Posted on Jan 17 2008 14:01 Went to see this last week. This is not a feel good movie but still enjoyed it. It had some deeply moving parts and also sad and joyous bits. If you like your films bitter/sweet this is the movie for you
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- chopsy said...
- Posted on Jan 15 2008 18:20 Definitely one of the best films of 2007. A moving experience that leaves you thinking about the themes long after you leave the cinema. I would love to see more thought provoking cinema instead the jumk that passes for cinema now
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- Jennifer said...
- Posted on Jan 15 2008 14:30 A breathtaking film - I did not know how they would manage to make a film out of the book - incidentally if you haven't read it then you really should - but they have really triumphed. It is deeply moving, spectacularly filmed - I agree that it is not suitable for 12 year old children as it has some really disturbing scenes including a woman being stoned to death - but it is really moving. The acting is superb, particularly the child actors and Amir's father was brilliant. Make sure you have tissues and if you wear mascara, make sure it is waterproof! I heartily recommend this. Definitely a film which will stay with me for a long, long time.
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- critique said...
- Posted on Jan 15 2008 14:06 A mixed bag. Some scenes of genuine power and several impressive acting performances (the two children, Amir`s father) but also some over-sentimentality and some scenes which defy credulity.
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Cast & crew
Director: Marc Forster
Producer: William Horberg, Walter F Parkes, Rebecca Yeldham, E Bennett Walsh
Cast: Khalid Abdalla, Homayoun Ershadi, Zekeria Ebrahimi, Ahmad Khan Mahmidzada, Shaun Toub, Atoosa Leoni, Saïd Taghmaoui, Ali Danish Bakhtyari, Nabi Tanha, Elham Ehsas, Bahram Ehsas, Tamim Nawabi, Qadir Farookh, Abdul Salam Yusoufzai full cast
Genre(s): Drama
Rated: 12A
Duration: 128 mins
UK Release: Dec 26 2007
US Release: Dec 14 2007
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