The Kite Runner - 4/5
Firstly the confession - I've not actually read the book, so can't judge how good an adaptation this is. Given subject matter that includes child rape and the devestation of Afghanistan it was never going to be an easy film to watch, but director Marc Forster (Finding Neverland, Monsters Ball) has crafted another beautiful and moving effort.
Its not quite perfect - there's the odd moment, especially towards the end, that relies to heavily on coincidence and feels slightly at odds with the tone of the rest of the piece, but in general this is very well done and thought-provoking. The acting throughout, from a cast of relative unknowns, is superb - especially with the children, who in many respects have the most demanding roles. The main characters are fully fleshed - shown warts and all, believable people with believable weaknesses.
We have a touching portrayal of a childhood friendship between Amir and Hassan which crosses both racial and class divides. There's realism too, in the way that Amir fails to deal with some of the events beyond his control and ends up destroying the friendship. There's also the interesting relationship between Amir and his flawed, but loving father. There's an interesting portrayal of Afghan culture in exile in LA, with Amir now grown-up and a writer. Finally there's the shocking devestation he finds returning to his homeland to try and rescue his friend's son from the Taliban and to make amends for his childhood mistakes.
There's also incredible beauty in the cinematography, especially in the kite flying scenes - you'd never have believed that competitive kite flying could be so fascinating.
Not an easy watch, but a very worthwhile one
5 comments:
Never mind all these "worthy" films - I've got to take my 4 year old to the pictures at the weekend and he's desperate to see Bee Movie.
So what I want to know is, what am I letting myself in for?
Thanks for the comments Jack, although I'm afraid I can't help you with Bee Movie as I haven't seen it. The reviews I've seen for it have been kind of average. Of other movies for wee ones, Mr Magorium's Wonder Emporium was definitely the best i've seen recently. Review somewhere in the posts for december.
Hope you enjoy the film, or at the very least your 4 year old does!
Tony.
Bee Movie: well, let's just say I wouldn't recommend it.
But then again, I'm not a 4 year old - and he loved it - and I suspect he's more the target audience than me!
How do I say that I enjoyed The Kite Runner?? It was a superb movie but so harrowing - enjoyed seems the wrong word. Superb acting and cinematography, and a well crafted adaptation of a complex, and at times rambling book.
That said, I highly recommend the book. I'd read it before I saw the film, and mentally filled in lots of blanks where perhaps the movie relies on coincidences. The latter part of the plot in particular has much more power in the novel and Amir's redemptive journey is far more believable.
[PS. We have two mutual friends Tony, and almost met at their wedding in December! James pointed me here - great blog. My next movie trip is Sweeney Todd I think. I'll look out to see if you post a review.]
Thanks for the comment Jennie. You make an interesting point about the book, but I'm afraid I haven't read it yet, so can't comment.
I'm hoping to see Sweeney Todd this weekend, so might post something next week if I get the chance.
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