(Sorry for no video version of the review, but I’m currently visiting in Los Angeles) I didn’t know much about “The Kite Runner” until a while ago we heard the story about how the films producers wanted to get the two young child actors out of Afghanistan before they released the film out of concern for their safety. Publicity stunt or not, that was a classy move on their part since Afghanistan isn’t exactly the most secure place in the world right now. I heard much about the quality of the Khaled Hosseini book and I’ve been curious to see how it played out on screen.
To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much from the film. The main reason was because it appeared to revolve around child actors… and that happens I’m not usually impressed (there are exceptions obviously… but in general I don’t like it when child actors are put in a position where they’re supposed to lead a film). So off I went.
THE GENERAL IDEA
Amir grew up in Afghanistan during a much different time before the Russian invasion. His father was an affluent man with strong ideas and his very best friend, Hassan was the son of the house servant (who had been with the family as long as they can remember). Despite being servant and employer, the two boys share an incredible friendship and bond until a horrible incident pushes the two apart. Amir and his father are forced to flee to America when the Russians invade, and 20 many years later Amir receives a phone call letting him know that his old childhood friend Hassan needs his help… and Amir must return to Afghanistan.
THE GOOD
Remember in the introduction when I said I had mildly low expectations from the film because it was being lead by child actors? Yeah well… the two kids were awesome. There is something so enduringly pure about the innocence and bond between them that it was almost enough to choke me up a couple of times. It forced me to reflect a little when leaving the theater about why we adults (I use the term loosely in my case) don’t lavish in, celebrate or cherish our friendships like these two small boys living in and through difficult times? Sometimes when you look at children you see noisy bratty like mistakes…. but sometimes you look at them and you can see a better world. That’s when these kids in this movie did for me, and they portrayed it with a maturity well beyond their years.
The themes of guilt and shame are powerfully and yet subtlety draw on. I don’t want to give much away, but in the story a terrible betrayal happens between the boys… but only the guilty one knows about it… and that guilt that he lives with slowly make him start to push the other boy away, because the other boy becomes a living representation of his shame and is reminded of it now every time he sees him. It was so heart breakingly well played out that I almost wish the rest of the movie revolved around it and just dealt with that instead of the rest of the story.
Amir’s father is played by an actor named Homayoun Ershadi and I guaran-damn-tee you we will be seeing more of him in the future. He brought a wonderful sense of flawed power, imperfect strength and sometimes compromised ingegrity. A human man who believes strongly in right and wrong and does his best to instill that same sense in his young (and older) son.
THE BAD
Where the first 2 acts of the film played out beautifully, elegant and touching, the third act shifted gears and jars you. Suddenly the film feels more like “Mission Impossible” as the older Amir sneaks back into Afghanistan. The problem here is that while everything unfolded at a beautiful pace in the first two acts, the third feels rushed and spotty. The story also introduces major “coincidences” that were just a little to hard to swallow… and even then they should have been played out a little better. It was enough to take that sweet taste that the first part gave us… and soured it.
OVERALL
Had The Kite Runner been broken up into two separate films… the first film dealing with their childhood all the way up to Amir receiving that faithful phone call, and then the second film journeying with Amir as he goes back to Afghanistan, I think they both could have played out very well, but in cramming the two together, the brilliance if the first part is soured by the rush and disjointedness of the second. Still, the beautiful story of childhood friendship shines, and makes this film well worth watching… but don’t feel bad if you have to leave 20 minutes before the end of the film. Overall I give The Kite Runner a 6.5 out of 10.
Great review.
I agree with you on the idea that the first part was good, and the second part was… not so good.
My main issue with the second part of the film is that they cut out so much. I’m currently studying the book for an A-level, and the book relies upon certain events to pull the film together. In the second half of the book, Sohrab is explored alot more. A massive thing happens to Sohrab which causes the ending to have alot more meaning, and without this event the film felt very disjointed.
Still, a good film.
The child actors were in no danger, until the movie. Why are they in grave danger now? Nothing implied or insinuated here, just want the truth.
Oops not alot* I mean also
This book tells an epic tale of fathers and sons, of friendship and betrayal, that takes us from Afghanistan in the final days of the monarchy during the 1970’s to the atrocities of the present.
The unforgettable, heartbreaking story of the unlikely friendship between a wealthy boy and the son of his father’s servant, The Kite Runner is a beautifully crafted novel set in a country that is in the process of being destroyed. It is about the power of reading, the price of betrayal, and the possibility of redemption, and it is also about the power of fathers over sons—their love, their sacrifices, their lies.
I really like the book, When I first read this book I couldn’t put it down, it took me back to my country that I long to see so much. I have never read a book that made so many stream of emotions come over me. I’m proud of Mr. Hosseini for his wonderful accomplishments and a positive rising star amongst our ppl.
By the way Nasim Khan ur very good to tell the story. I’m alot an afghan girl :)
“The Kite Runner” an awesome book, great attention to details. Every single page made me cry, laugh, warmed up my heart with love, and made me angry… I cried non-stop throughout the book.
i absolutely loved the movie and thought it should have been a 7-8/10! however, i do agree that parts are disjointed and doesnt flow as well and can be hard for someone to keep track. having said that, i absolutely loved it! i even cried! it was very touching and nolstalgic of one’s childhood and innocence and how a memory can haunt one…. GO WATCH IT!
OHHHHHHHHH ONE MORE THING:
I STILL LOVED THE MOVIE!!! I hope it wins many awards because it has won many hearts.
I am an Afghan, Pashtoon who has read this book twice. Once for my self and once to my mother who understands English but does not speak it. I loved the book both times I’ve read it. I was not happy about how the Pashtoons were categorized in the book but took as a story line and dismissed my dismay on this notion.
Thoughts on movie:
I just saw the movie yesterday and have to say that the book is a whole lot better. The movie starts out at a fair pace pulling you into the story deeply then shakes you up with fast paced story telling and skipping over parts of the book…this I was not thrilled with. I thought they could have told the last half of the movie a little more gracefully.
Funny and Weird parts in the movie:
As an Afghan, I laughed my head off in a few scenes that were just simply helarious. I loved Ahmad Zahir at the b-day party, the weird men dancing at the wedding (TRUST ME FOLKS>>THEY DANCE A WHOLE LOT BETTER…lol). I also loved the scene where Amir and his fiance-to-be goes for a walk on the side walk to talk and her mother follows them to chaperone…lol…that had me going for a good while. There were other very funny parts as well. I wish I could remember them all.
The got it WRONG parts in the movie:
1. The Stadium….men and women did not attend it. Only men went…and if they were to attend, they most certainly would not have sat next to each other…lol.
2. The Taliban did not wear black turbans with gold threading. They had and still have a specefic dress code. They wore/wear plain black silk turbans with black/brown/or white clothing with one pant leg pulled up. No bright colors were worn by them.
3. There are no camels on the streets in Peshawar…lol
4. AMIR’s father and friend Rahim were Persians…NOT AFGHANS…one can clearly tell so from their Iranian accent. They should’ve worked harder and hired real Afghan actors. We have them, thank you very much!!!
5. The Music should’ve been authentic Afghan music. The only authentic Afghan music used in the movie was at the b-day party and wedding. The rest is non-Afghan but has a middle eastern flair to it….oh wait a minute, Afghanistan is not even in the Middle East…damn!?
WOW! Only a 6.5? I absolutely LOVED this film. Moved me to tears. And Amir’s father was FANTASTIC as you said. That scene in the back of the truck with the Russian soldier was my favorite of the whole film. He better get nominated for an Oscar, because his performance is one of the best I’ve seen any actor give all year. I do agre that the coincidences at the end were much too convenient, but it wasn’t so blatant that it stopped the film for me. One thing that you didn’t mention was the actual kite-flying sequences. They were so cool-looking. They looked like aerial dogfights, like something out of Star Wars or something. I was on the edge of my seat…during kite-flying, for pete’s sake!