This is a really beautiful film and I was completely enthralled by it from start to finish. Based on the book by Khaled Hosseini it tells the story of two young boys - Amir and Hassan, living in Afghanistan, divided by class but united by a strong friendship and a love for telling stories and flying kites. Due to some unforeseen events they both become separated, emotionally and physically, and with the oncoming invasion by the Russians both lose each other as Amir is forced to leave the country with his faster and flee to Pakistan whilst Hassan leaves with his servant father to go elsewhere, never to be seen again. Years later Amir, now a successful author and living in California with his father, gets a phone call from someone from his someone from his past, and so he travels back to war-torn Afghanistan (now overrun with the strict regimes of the Taliban) as he must do battle with his past to seek redemption for his future.
I've not read the book so I don't know how much of it is in here (I heard they cut out a fair bit and added some more things) but as a movie it worked brilliantly. All the performances here are magnificent, in particular the two young actors playing Amir and Hassan in their childhood years which are really well done. Khalid Abdalla who plays Amir in his 30s is also really well played, you really feel a presence in him and get to understand his inner turmoil, and the stand out performance, for me at least, was Homayoun Ershadi, who plays Amir's father. I thought his acting was excellent and I complete believed in his portrayal as a quiet yet very strong and determined man standing up for his rights. Atossa Leoni, who plays Amir's wife, was also pretty good though she hardly has any lines her face and eyes did all the acting and it completely worked well.
The story is simple yet beautifully told. It's believable and works thanks to it's construction, execution and the performances by said actors. The relationship between the two young boys is done superbly, as is the relationship between Amir and his father which to me really had an impact. Set in Afghanistan amongst is also done well, we get to see an insight into a culture not really done on this level before (usually it's all drab, dreary and negative) but here it's less stereotypical and seems more real. The visuals are at times stunning (especially the backdrops of Afghanistan which might not have much there but indeed look incredible, warm colours and movement adding great depth to it). The kite flying scenes are also excellent, free flowing and poetic adding as a metaphor to the movie (a special mention must also go to the animated opening credits which are also brilliant! Loved the way it was done).
The serious issues of the country and it's people are of course are dealt with and not ignored, but not over-done in a typical and over sentimental way as is what usually happens in a Hollywood movie dealing with a film like this and it's nature. It' got a right sense of balance in there for us to be aware of it yet a new experience for us entirely too, and for that I must give credit for too. Ultimately it's the simple story at heart which drives the film and which is what the whole movie is about, and that's what we focus on because it done superbly.
All in all a memorable film which is beyond its initial simplistic surface, the more I watch it the deeper it got. Great music, visuals, beautiful and heart wrenching story and superb acting all add to one of the best films of the year. I won't be forgetting this one in a hurry.
Verdict: Beautiful and heartwarming: 8/10
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