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, Ahmad Khan Mahmoodzada, Atossa Leoni

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 6 wins & 22 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 kiting 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 kiting, 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:

based on novel | friend | afghanistan | boy | kite | 

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Taglines:

There is a way to be good again.

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Genres:

Drama

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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

Country:

USA China

Language:

Dari English Pushto Russian Urdu

Release Date:

11 January 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cometas en el cielo

Filming Locations:

China

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$471,713, 16 December 2007, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$15,800,078

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$74,180,745

Company Credits

Production Co:

DreamWorks,Sidney Kimmel Entertainment,Participant Media

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the DVD commentary, David Benioff said Uncle Saifo's lines in Dari are completely different from the English subtitles. Director Marc Forster said that the improvisation technique was common among the Afghan actors, many of whom weren't professional actors.

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Goofs

(at around 22 mins) When people from the Middle East speak English, they frequently use the word "too" where native American speakers interpret the use of "too" as meaning "excessively" and would instead use "very". Where the subtitles translate what Baba tells Rahim Kahn as "You come here too often" he certainly means "You come here very often" and would not insult Rahim Kahn by meaning "You come here excessively often."

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Quotes

Young Hassan: For you, a thousand times over!

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Connections

Featured in The 80th Annual Academy Awards (2008)

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Soundtracks

Beds are Burning
Written by Peter Garrett, Peter Gifford, Rob Hirst (as Robert Hirst) and Jim Moginie (as James Moginie)
Performed by Midnight Oil
Courtesy of Columbia Records and Sony BMG Music Entertainment (Australia) Pty.
By Arrangement with Sony BMG Music Entertainment

User Reviews

Variance on Theft

Greetings again from the darkness. Based on the mega-best seller from author Khaled Hosseini, the film provides us a peak at the ugliness of post-Russia invaded Afghanistan and the terror of the Taliban. Director Marc Foster adds a gem to his resume, which already includes "Monster's Ball", "Finding Neverland" and "Stranger Than Fiction".

The story of young friends Amir and Hassan and the unknown bond they share into the next generation. This is a story of honor and courage and loyalty and is an unusual coming-of-age tale. Some great scenes of the boys when they are kids and then a couple of truly amazing scenes as Amir returns as an adult to find Hassan's imprisoned son.

This is tight, compelling story telling with a message. The acting is solid throughout, with no one actor stealing the screen. Although not a pleasant story to watch unfold, it is certainly meaningful and heart felt. Plus a quick shot of Midnight Oil playing in the pool hall is a welcome gift.