The Kite Runner (2007)

After spending years in California, Amir returns to his homeland in Afghanistan to help his old friend Hassan, whose son is in trouble.

Director:

Marc Forster

Writers:

David Benioff (screenplay), Khaled Hosseini (novel)

Stars:

Khalid Abdalla, Atossa Leoni, Shaun Toub

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 4 wins & 14 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Khalid Abdalla	...	Amir
Atossa Leoni	...	Soraya
Shaun Toub	...	Rahim Khan
Sayed Jafar Masihullah Gharibzada	...	Omar
Zekeria Ebrahimi	...	Young Amir
Ahmad Khan Mahmoodzada	...	Young Hassan
Mir Mahmood Shah Hashimi	...	Business Man in Baba's Study
Homayoun Ershadi	...	Baba
Nabi Tanha	...	Ali
Elham Ehsas	...	Young Assef
Bahram Ehsas	...	Wali
Tamim Nawabi	...	Kamal
Mohamad Nabi Attai	...	Uncle Saifo the Kite Seller
Mohamad Nadir Sarwari	...	Spice Merchant
Mustafa Haidari	...	Party Worker

Storyline

In the 70's in Afghanistan, the Pushtun boy Amir and the Hazara boy Hassan, who is his loyal friend and son of their Hazara servant Ali, are raised together in Amir's father house, playing and kitting on the streets of a peaceful Kabul. Amir feels that his wise and good father Baba blames him for the death of his mother in the delivery, and also that his father loves and prefers Hassan to him. In return, Amir feels a great respect for his father's best friend Rahim Khan, who supports his intention to become a writer. After Amir winning a competition of kitting, Hassan runs to bring a kite to Amir, but he is beaten and raped by the brutal Assef in an empty street to protect Amir's kite; the coward Amir witness the assault but does not help the loyal Hassam. On the day after his birthday party, Amir hides his new watch in Hassam's bed to frame the boy as a thief and force his father to fire Ali, releasing his conscience from recalling his cowardice and betrayal. In 1979, the Russians ...

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Plot Keywords:

friend | afghanistan | boy | kite | hazara | 

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Taglines:

There is a way to be good again.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for strong thematic material including the rape of a child, violence and brief strong language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Paramount [fr]

Country:

USA China

Language:

Dari English Pushto Russian Urdu

Release Date:

26 December 2007 (Ireland)

Also Known As:

Cometas en el cielo

Filming Locations:

USA

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£468,592 (UK) (28 December 2007)

Gross:

$15,797,907 (USA) (11 April 2008)

Company Credits

Production Co:

DreamWorks SKG, Sidney Kimmel Entertainment, Participant Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Screenwriter David Benioff mentions at 21:18 on the DVD commentary that what Uncle Saifo the kite seller says in Dari is completely different from what is shown in the English subtitles. Director Marc Forster adds that the improvisation technique was common among the Afghan actors, many of whom weren't really actors.

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Goofs

When Hassan first points the slingshot at the three big guys to save Amir it is crossed but in the next shot it appears to be normal again.

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Quotes

Baba: [regarding the mullahs, who teach that drinking alcohol is a sin] I piss on the beards of all those self-righteous monkeys.

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Connections

Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Episode dated 15 December 2007 (2007)

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Soundtracks

"An Ugly Fact of Life"
from Friday Night Lights
Written by Christopher Hrasky, Michael James, Munaf Rayani & Mark Smith
Performed by Explosions in the Sky
Courtesy of Universal Studios LLLP

User Reviews

And the Oscar goes to ...

The Kite Runner should win an Oscar! It's perfect in every sense, the story, the script, the acting, the cinematography... One would never guess it was filmed in China. The story of two childhood friends and what follows in their adult lives will leave a lasting impression. The depiction of life in Afghanistan under the Taliban is all too real and horrifying. I have not read the book, but I have seen comments that put down the movie because "the book is always better"... It doesn't really matter. No one put down "Gone With The Wind" because it wasn't true to the book! As a matter of fact, it won the Academy Award for best picture and several other Oscars. I think this movie is brilliant - BRAVO to the writer and director, and the actors!