Dream Works, 12/14/07, Directed by Marc Forster, Cast: Khalid Abdalla, Homayoun Ershadi, Zekiria Ebrahimi, Ahmad Khan Mahmoodzada. Watch the Trailer.

I was very fortunate to view this movie at a private screening at the recent Blog World Expo (11/7) in Las Vegas, Nevada. Film Critic and talk show host Michael Medved and Khalid Abdalla, the star of the film, hosted the event and graciously answered questions at the end.

The movie was originally scheduled to have already come out this fall, but the release was delayed in order to insure the safety of the child actors in the film who still live in Afghanistan.

This movie will be in running for the best film of the year. At least it’s now at the top of my list. It is an excellent representation of the ‘best seller’ book: "The Kite Runner".

It gives us an interesting taste of the sights and sounds of old Afghanistan before the Russians, the Taliban, and nearly 20 years of war. Speaking of sounds, the musical score by Alberto Iglesias incorporates native instruments and Afghan musicians to give it a unique flavor. I expect that the score will receive some Oscar mention.

The story starts with a phone call taken by a young man with an old family friend on the other end telling him that he needs to come back to Afghanistan to take care of some family business. Then the story line flashes back 20 years.

It is the story of two boys, Amir and Hassan, that are friends until a tragic event changes their relationship forever. The boys had just won a kite tournament in Kabul and in the midst of their celebration, one boy, Hassan, is cruelly attacked while the other, Amir, shrinks from helping his friend.

Soon events overtake them all and separate the friends forever, as Russian tanks come rolling into Kabul and Amir and his father run for their lives and escape to America.

20 years pass, and we now find Amir in America as a grown man within the Afghan expatriate community. Amir finds a young lady that he is interested in, however her father was a former general who does not seem to favor Amir. Amir’s father is now dying of cancer but gets out of bed and goes to the general and somehow arranges for the marriage.

Soon the father passes on, but we now see that Amir and his wife have established a happy home. Then the phone rings.

We follow Amir back to Afghanistan and experience the dark cruelty of the Taliban regime. Amir discovers that Hassan has been killed by the authorities but has a son. His fathers old friend informs Amir of a surprising family secret and he sets out to find Hassan’s son.

This ends up being a tale of redemption as Amir makes up for his earlier treatment of Hassan by risking his own life in rescuing Hassan’s son and bringing him back to America and a new home.

I highly recommend this movie. This is a film which is much more than just entertainment, it is an experience. *Top

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