the kite runner

read the book and have now seen the film
so did things in the right order i suspect
about a year ago i picked up the book at an airport
read it pretty well non-stop over a few days
a very readable story of 2 boyhood friends from kabul
with ethnic and cultural backgrounds bound to tear them apart
amir is the pushtan son of a rich and successul businessman
hassan the son of the businessman's hazara servant
the film opens with amir as a man and author
married, childless and happily living in the u s of a
he unexpectedly receives a phone call calling him back
reminding him it is not too late to correct a wrong-doing
we then travel back in time to boyhood life in kabul
before the russian invasion and taliban dominance
there's some great scenes of kabul at peace
the people mostly poor but enjoying life
the innocence of childhood well portrayed
as the 2 boys enjoy a genuine and touching friendship
including participation in a popular local pastime and sport
involving kite-flying and aerial warfare using the kites
so that the line is cut and the freed kite is then pursued
hassan is a champion kite runner with his knack at retrieval
but before long jealousy, bullying and racial vilification enter the scene
leading to a testing of then downfall of the boys friendship
shortly after the russians invade and life will never be the same
amir and his father flee via pakistan to america
the second part of the story is set in the u s
in part depicting the struggle of migrants in that country
one scene sees amir and father in a bar celebrating his graduation
beds are burning by midnight oil tellingly blasting in the background
quite a subtle use of the message in that song i thought
before long the phone-call sees us back in kabul with amir
on the search for the son of his now dead friend
and re-visiting places from his childhood
this contrast in times cleverly illustrates the destruction of war
and an explanation of the resurgence of an extremist group
for the taliban are now in power and reeking havoc
there is a very disturbing scene of their treatment of women
which i had remembered from the book and had hoped would be bypassed
but the director impressively stays true to the book
and the scene is included but not unnecessarily highlighted
which fairly well sums up the way the film has been made
there seems to have been fine attention to the detail of the book
but balanced with a need to tell the story fully and accurately
meaning that sometimes scenes move by fairly rapidly
with then some important points made but not emphasised
which is probably ok for a viewer familiar with the book
but could lead to misunderstanding for others
this of course is probably the largest problem
in trying to convert a book that takes several days to read
into a film that can be absorbed in 2 hours
but i think in this case it has been done excellently
including the final scenes of redemption back in america
making for a very absorbing and moving film