There is a crucial plot detail in The Kite Runner that has grown into such a controversy that it has preceded and in some senses overshadowed the movie itself to the point where discussing it without revealing said narrative shift has become virtually impossible. If you’ve read Khaled Hosseini’s bestseller, you know that the story revolves around the friendship of two young boys growing up in Kabul, Afghanistan, circa 1978. In a scene during the first half, one of them is attacked and raped by a group of burgeoning Taliban members.
Initially the 12-year-old actor (Mahmoodzada) balked at playing the scene, saying he wouldn’t have taken the part had he known about it. Later the boy’s parents tried to have the footage taken out of the film, which would have resulted in some rather confused storytelling. Eventually Paramount agreed to delay the film’s release until all concerned could be moved out of Afghanistan, as they feared residents might harm those involved.
Such strong reactions are indicative of both the movie’s power and the sometimes heavy-handed tactics of director Marc Forster. In Monster’s Ball he piled on tragedy after tragedy to the point of oppression. Here his direction is more sincere but still manipulative, as the picture’s structure is mostly an alternating series of inspirations and catastrophes.
At the heart of the movie, though, are the natural and moving performances of the two boys, Ebrahimi as Amir and Mahmoodzada as the sad but loyal servant Hassan. Although from different social classes, they are inseparable, enjoying dubbed American Westerns at the theater and flying kites in the streets of Kabul. These early sequences provide a vibrant portrait of the culture of late-’70s Afghanistan, until Hassan chases a fallen kite down the wrong alleyway one day. Soon after, the Soviets invade.
Amir and his father, Baba (Ershadi), escape to America, prompting the second half of the story. Ershadi gives such a grounded and intelligent performance that he provides both his son and the audience with a sort of compass throughout the sometimes messy proceedings. Eventually the tone shifts to that of a political thriller as the grown-up Amir (Abdalla) must journey from the safety of San Francisco and infiltrate Taliban-controlled Afghanistan to retrieve Hassan’s missing son.
Although the film is rated PG-13, the aforementioned sequence and later ones depicting the war-torn country give it an R-rated feel. Forster mostly handles them with restraint and heartfelt authenticity. He may not always make the best use of it, but he has true talent.
The Kite Runner
***
Khalid Abdalla, Homayoun Ershadi, Zekeria Ebrahimi, Ahmad Khan Mahmoodzada
Directed by Marc Forster
Rated PG-13
Opens Friday