The Kite Runner (2007)
Drama |.
The Kite Runner is a American drama film directed by Marc Forster from a screenplay by David Benioff and based on the 2003 novel of the same name by Khaled Hosseini. It tells the story of Amir, a well-to-do boy from the Wazir Akbar Khan district of Kabul who is tormented by the guilt of abandoning his friend Hassan. The story is set against a backdrop of tumultuous events, from the fall of the monarchy in Afghanistan through the Soviet military intervention, the mass exodus of Afghan refugees to Pakistan and the United States, and the Taliban regime.
Though most of the film is set in Afghanistan, these parts were mostly shot in Kashgar, China, due to the dangers of filming in Afghanistan at the time. The majority of the film’s dialogue is in Dari, with the remainder spoken in English and a few short scenes in Urdu. The child actors are native speakers, but several adult actors had to learn Dari. Filming wrapped up on December 21, 2006, and the film was expected to be released on November 2, 2007.
Setting: San Francisco, 2000
The film opens with an Afghan-American writer Amir Qadiri and his wife, Soraya, who are watching children flying kites at a bayside park. When they arrive home, Amir finds waiting for him packages of his new novel, A Season for Ashes, which has just been published.
Flashback: Kabul, 1978–79
Ten-year-old Amir is the son of a wealthy man, known locally by the honorific title “Agha Sahib.” (Amir refers to him as “Baba,” meaning “father.”) Agha Sahib, a philanthropist and iconoclast, is a Pashtun living in Kabul. Amir’s best friend Hassan is the son of the Agha Sahib’s Hazara servant, Ali. Amir participates in the sport of kite fighting, popular among the boys of Kabul.
Flash Forward: Fremont, California, 1988
Baba runs a service station and operates a stall at a weekly flea market. Amir earns a degree at a local community college, and Baba, though disappointed that Amir wants to be a writer rather than a physician, says that Amir can earn money by working with him. One day at the flea market, Amir’s father introduces him to General Taheri, another Pashtun and a former officer in the Afghan army.
Flash Forward, 2000
Rahim Khan persuades Amir to visit him in Pakistan. He tells Amir that the situation is bad, but that Amir has an opportunity to “be good again.” Amir cancels his book tour and goes to Peshawar. Rahim Khan, who is dying, tells Amir that after several unsuccessful stints with caretakers at Baba and Amir’s home, which Rahim Khan had been looking after, he had asked Hassan to return, which Hassan did, with his wife and son.
Director: Marc Forster
Writers: David Benioff (screenplay), Khaled Hosseini (novel)
Stars: Khalid Abdalla, Ahmad Khan Mahmoodzada, Atossa Leoni, Zekeria Ebrahimi, Homayoun Ershadi, Shaun Toub
Cast:
| 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 |
| Ahmad Yasar Shir Agha | … | Birthday Singer |
| Mohammad Aman Joya | … | Mahmood |
| Abdul Azim Wahabzada | … | Karim |
| Vsevolod Sevanchos | … | Soviet Union Soldier |
| Murina Abudukelimu | … | Young Wife in Truck |
| Igor Radchenko | … | Soviet Union Officer |
| Larry Brown | … | Gas Station Customer |
| L. Peter Callender | … | Dean of Students |
| Josh Chamberlain | … | Pool Player |
| Marco Mazariegos | … | Pool Player |
| Shaan Price | … | Pool Player |
| Abdul Qadir Farookh | … | General Taheri (as Qadir Farookh) |
| Peg McKibbin | … | Flea Market Customer |
| Chris Verrill | … | Dr. Starobin |
| Amar Kureishi | … | Dr. Amani |
| Maimoona Ghizal | … | Jamila Taheri |
| Ehsan Aman | … | Wedding Singer (as Mohammad Ehsan Aman) |
| Yunus Osman | … | Cemetery Mullah |
| Mehboob Ali | … | Pakistan Taxi Driver |
| Saïd Taghmaoui | … | Farid |
| Nasser Memarzia | … | Zaman the Orphanage Director |
| Abdul Salam Yusoufzai | … | Assef |
| Mohamad Amin Rahimi | … | Taliban Stadium Speaker |
| Aziz Raxidi | … | Assef Guard |
| Khalil Ahmad Nooryan | … | Assef Guard |
| Ali Danish Bakhtyari | … | Sohrab |
| Hameeda Hamraz | … | Rahim Khan’s Neighbor |
| Kaiser Doulat-Beek | … | Man at Mosque |
| Ahmad Shah Alam | … | Man in the Park |
| Khaled Hosseini | … | Doctor in the Park |
| Habib Zargi | … | Park Kite Seller |
| Houshmand Habib | … | Kite Flyer Kid |
| Lukas Ferreira | … | Kite Spooler Kid |
| Saeed Meeran Farhad | … | Stout man in truck (as Sayed Miran Farhad) |
| Anita Argent | … | Parent of Graduate (uncredited) |
| Harmony Blossom | … | Young Woman in Park (uncredited) |
| Cabran E. Chamberlain | … | Graduation Ceremony Guest (uncredited) |
| John de Lancie | … | Barman (uncredited) |
| Emmy Farese | … | Little Girl Flying Kite in Park (uncredited) |
| Susan Farese | … | Woman in Park (uncredited) |
| Tim Halpin | … | Soviet Tank Commander (uncredited) |
| Katrina-Jovan Howard | … | College Graduate (uncredited) |
| Larry Kitagawa | … | Professor at Graduation (uncredited) |
| Charles Lewis III | … | Graduate (uncredited) |
| Kenny Santiago Marrero | … | Russian Soldier (uncredited) |
| Jeff Redlick | … | Parent at Graduation (uncredited) |
| Germaine Mozel Sims | … | College Graduating Senior (uncredited) |
| Yvonne Truong | … | Graduate (uncredited) |
| Brian Vowell | … | College Graduate (uncredited) |
Sources: imdb & wikipedia