Kabul Express

Kabul Express had been in a number of local festivals here, as well as in the Asian Festival of First Films, and I rue the missed opportunities to have watched this on the big screen. I guess a DVD with extras would have to do, and my interest was initially piqued because it was one of the first films to have been shot in Afghanistan after the fall of the Taliban. Given that we dare not venture into what are currently hot spots in the world, film then serves as the next best thing to be able to see the city of Kabul captured on screen by the filmmakers, for the world at large.

Shot entirely in and around Kabul, Afghanistan, Kabul Express features plenty of lush scenery captured by the beautiful cinematography, and it helps that both the writer-director Kabir Khan, and his director of photography Anshuman Mahaley had been in and around the country a couple of times themselves, the former being a documentary filmmaker who had gone a handful of times, and this film summarizes his experiences in the country which he had distilled into his first feature length narrative film. Through their eyes we see worlds that we don't normally see, and they have a very mature and poignant story to tell, steering clear of the very obvious story lines of condemning outright the Taliban here, though not without reasons.

Kabir Khan had weaved humanity across all the characters he put into this film, and consciously had everyone from different nationalities and cultures come together in a melting pot known as the Kabul Express, an offroad jeep which is used to ferry them around on a road trip pretty much to satisfy the wishes of the one holding onto the rifle. I thought it was a fine decision to have the actors actually from the countries involved in order to add a little authenticity and to bring across some genuine deep rooted nuances and attitudes to their roles, especially when dealing with the theme of hatred.

John Abraham and Arshad Warsi play journalists from India Suhei and Jai respectively, who decided to boost their careers with getting themselves into Afghanistan to interview themselves some Taliban, who are now hunted by the Northern Alliance and the US troops, and are fighting for their lives. With the help of a local Afghan guide Khyber (Hanif Hum Ghum) and a chance meeting cum rescue mission of American photographer Jessica Beckham (Linda Arsenio), they come into contact with an escaping Pakistani Imran Khan Afridi (Salman Shahid), who had fought with the Taliban, and now with the help of an AK47, forces the group to bring him back to the Pakistan border.

Kabir Khan had crafted some very nicely done set pieces, be it action or drama, and definitely comedy which hit the right note most of the time, at all the right places. The funny bits do defuse plenty of tension which come inbuilt with the kind of rough wild west lawlessness and terrain that the characters find themselves in, where everyone's for themselves, and self- serving militant groups still around to rule over their self-imposed jurisdictions. And for this Kabir himself got into some flak for portraying the Hazara ethnic group in bad light. There's nothing in black and white, and everything is in grey territory here, such as the symbiotic relationship that Pakistan allegedly shares with the Taliban that gets explored here.

But I suppose road movies provide for perfect opportunities where misconceptions are cleared and prejudices get addressed, where fears of the unknown get dissipated once familiarity creeps in. The team in the jeep through time spent together, whether they like it or not, had forged an uneasy alliance and dependence on one another, and if not for their backgrounds, they could be friends, given their common ground for movies, song and love of cricket. Except for the American of course, who's more often portrayed as obnoxious, and doesn't think before she shoots off her mouth. I felt that was one scene where she could have told a white lie in order to ease a tense situation, but in doing what was deemed to be the right thing, had failed to see the obvious repercussions staring right at her face.

Blessed by a truly hypnotic score, Kabul Express enthralls, not by being a novelty of achieving firsts in many areas, but through a story which was delivered right by the multi- national cast, and the relevance and importance that we live in a world without strangers, where barriers could be broken down with communication and understanding. Definitely highly recommended in my books!

I will not bother to recap the story, I'll go straight into my opinion. Everyone takes this subject matter so seriously (as they should) because it is happening at present, but this film dares to add comedy at the most unexpected times, to the most unexpected situations, while still being informative and paying respect to the subject matter. Is worth at least one viewing. At the Toronto Film Festival, people seem to really enjoy this film, if that means anything. I was a little surprised to hear Arshad Warsi refer to this film as a Bollywood film, although I guess it is, even though it does not resonate as one. This appears (according to IMDb) to be Kabir Khan's first narrative film, I must applaud him for a job well done. The only thing that needed major adjusting, is Linda Arsenio's acting. It ruins a great deal of the film. I could hear the people behind me saying exactly what I was thinking, "she's so bad!" This almost seems to be a trend in Bollywood films, Western people's acting is rarely believable. All in all, very good, watch it!

Set in a War Ravaged Afghanistan post 9/11, Kabul Express sets off on a journey illustrating the different sides of those involved particularly that of a Pakistani soldier ordered to dutifully fight along side the Taliban in spite of his personal beliefs. We soon learn about the regime and immediately despise the Taliban and its representative, Imran played by Salman Shahid. However, as the story unfolds, both the audience along with journalists played by John Abraham and Arshad Warsi, begin to see Imran's humanity, the cruelty inflicted by either side and discover that soldiers exist to unquestionably follow orders. The film briefly touches on the complication of International politics while painting Pakistan as the bad guy.

Arshad Warsi continues to flex his versatile acting material and maintaining his hold as one of the better actors in Bollywood and Hanif Hum Ghum and Salman Shahid are certainly more than adequate in their supporting roles. Although John Abraham's effort to stretch his acting abilities is admirable, his performance is sterile and evidence suggests he was miscast. Linda Aresenio who portrays the American Journalist Jessica, came across as no more than an amateur actor which was a real shame as these were the two main downfalls of this original feature.

Even though there was scope to create a deeper bond between Imran and the other characters and the end seemed fairly rushed, one much realise this is new territory for Indian cinema and their first step is a respectable one. Kabul Express contains a bit of everything from horror, breathtaking visuals to a good chuckle which is delivered with perfect timing by Warsi. A must see for those that appreciate quality and originality in Bollywood.

& really awesome one !!! Bollywood doesn't really make lots of movies on theme other than family drama or love or comedy. The maximum deviation that you can find is a very few movies based on domestic terrorism movies. This one definitely stood out than the rest in that regard. A very simple story, yet strong enough to capture the audience till the end. light comedy yet depicting the horror of Afganistan during the Taliban regime, mostly through dialogs. Most of the shootings as per one John Abraham's comment as done in Afganistan, that could justify why there is no Bollywood Actress and hence no typical Hindi songs. Everyone's role is competitive and justifiable. The director could do a better job in showing (through video not narration) of the horrifying past. Most of the shooting appeared to involve very few people in/around a very small mountain range. But hey, this is the first Indian movie as such in this category, so no complain there either :)

I won't say, this is a must see movie - however, its a great watch, if you are in a mood for sinking into the beautiful mountainous sorrounding of Kabul and Afghanistan - this is the movie for you. Slow paced it may be, but it has no boring moment. Very well cast, esp the Pakistani.

I totally enjoyed the conversations, and got little bit into the psyche of each character. All the characters are very real.

Movie has actually no songs, but few songs were released , i guess for the publicity of the movie. The title track, Kabul fiza, and Shubha Mudgals 'Banjar' were great tracks. The background score is excellent, kinda captures the beauty and intensity of the sorrounding at the same time.

One note for the cinematography - its awesome to show the widescreen panoramic awesome shots of Kabul, the hills, and blue sky - it looks tremendous.