This film is based on a novel by Khaled Hosseini. Amir has spent years in California and he returns to his homeland in Afghanistan to help his old friend Hassan. Amir learned that Hassan’s son is in trouble. In the 70's in Afghanistan, a Pushtun boy Amir and a Hazara boy Hassan are raised together in Amir's father's house. Hassan is his loyal friend and the son of their Hazara servant Ali. They are 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 during his delivery. Amir also feels that his father loves and prefers Hassan to him. In return, Amir feels a great respect for his father's best friend Rahim Khan. Rahim supports Amir’s intention to become a writer. After Amir is the winner in a competition of kiting, Hassan runs to bring a kite to Amir. He is beaten and raped by the brutal Assef in an empty street as he is trying 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. This act releases his conscience from the recall of his own cowardice and betrayal.
This film is an unforgettable but heartbreaking story of the unlikely friendship between a wealthy boy and the son of his father’s servant. The setting is in a country that is in the process of being destroyed. It is also about the high price of betrayal and also the possibility of redemption. It is an exploration of the power of fathers over sons, their loves, sacrifices and lies!! A very complex story taking place in a country with complex and rigid social structures. This drama focuses on children's experiences and the themes are very mature. Children are repeatedly in peril and there's a disturbing but not explicit scene in which a young boy is attacked by older boys. Several scenes show warfare with explosions, gunfire and bloody bodies during the Soviet invasion. Other scenes depict Taliban oppression including a public stoning, beatings and the taunting of civilians. One hanged body is visible on the street and there is a brief tirade full of language. 5* (I really liked this movie)
128 min, Drama directed by Marc Forster and written by David Benioff with Khalid Abdalla, Atossa Leoni, Shaun Toub, Sayed Jafar Masihulah Gharibzada, Zekeria Ebrahimi, Ahmad Khan Mahmoodzada, Mir Mahmoud Shah Hashimi, Homayoun Ershadi, Nabi Tanha, Elham and Bahram Ehsas, Tamim Nawabi, Mohamad Nabi Attai, Mohamad Nadir Sarwari, Mustafa Haidari.
Note: Goodreads gives the book 4.30* out of 5* with 2,455,457 ratings and 74,481 reviews, Imdb 7.6* out of 10* with 77,110 reviews, Amazon 4.7* out of 5* with 14,247 reviews, Common Sense Media Cynthia Fuchs, 3* out of 5*, age 15+, 3* sex, language, driving, drugs & smoking 5* violence, Metacritic 61 out of 100 with 34 critics, 7.8 out of 10 with 87 user scores.
Special Note: Most of the Afghanistan scenes were shot in Kashgar and Tashkurgan in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China. The DVD commentary mentions that scenes shot in Kashgar include: the kite tournament, the mosque where Amir prays and Rahim Khan's apartment in Peshawar, Pakistan. Scenes shot in Tashkurgan include the opening scenes of a kite duel, the boys running the kite, the pomegranate tree and the Taliban compound where Amir meets Sohrab. The wedding and the soccer match were shot in Beijing. The San Francisco bar scene was shot in China. In the book, the servant boy Hassan had a cleft upper lip, this flaw was left out of the film because it would have required two hours of makeup every day. It would also have been difficult for the boy to act in the makeup. Director Mark Forster didn't want to put the boy through it and it wasn't essential to the script.
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