Kandahar

Kandahar is the second action-drama about Afghanistan I've seen in the last month. Guy Ritchie's The Covenant is about the same subject matter. It's different but also very similar. I find it amusing to see the return of very similar movies released in the same year (think Olympus Has Fallen and White House Down). Fortunately, in this case both movies turned out great.

I enjoyed Kandahar and found it entertaining throughout. It has some cool action scenes that seem to emphasize realism. There is an action scene at night which had me complaining at first because I couldn't see much. I wondered why they didn't use some kind of lighting trick. But as I watched, I realized this is how it would look if I was in that situation, something I've never seen.

The action is only a small portion of this movie. But I was still invested because of the story and characters. There were scenes of suspense as well as slower character moments, but I was never bored. It does a good job of balancing many moving parts (different groups, races and motivations).

Watching this movie, I couldn't help but notice how far we've come regarding Islamophobia in action movies. I grew up watching action movies where brown skin = bad guy. And even worse, they were usually portrayed as gross and barbaric. Kandahar does a much better job of illustrating the complexity of the situation, how not everything is black and white, and how there are people within those communities trying to fight against what's wrong.

I think The Covenant does a better job of holding all sides (including our own) accountable, whereas Kandahar shows sympathy without ever asking for accountability. Even the main character does some bad things that are never addressed. I wish they went that extra step to show how detrimental the outside influences can be on these situations.

Nevertheless, I had a good time with this movie and am happy with how fairly and not one-sided things are portrayed.

(1 viewing, early screening Mystery Movie Monday 5/15/2023)

The film's strengths lie in its action sequences and Butler's performance. The action sequences are well-choreographed and exciting, and Butler gives a strong performance as the CIA operative. However, the film's weaknesses are its predictability and lack of originality. The plot is very predictable, and the film relies heavily on clichés and stereotypes. Overall, Kandahar is an average action thriller film that is worth watching for Butler's performance, but it is not a must-see film.

Here are some of the pros and cons of the film:

Pros:

Gerard Butler gives a strong performance.

The action sequences are well-choreographed and exciting.

The film is shot beautifully, capturing the harsh beauty of the Afghan landscape.

Cons:

The plot is predictable.

The film relies heavily on clichés and stereotypes.

The film is slow-paced at times.

Overall, Kandahar is an average action thriller film that is worth watching for Butler's performance, but it is not a must-see film.

After the explosion i got lost in this movie. Everyone is against each other and all together are chasing the spy and the poor translator. Every force that passed ftom the region in the last 20 years (USA,Talibans,ISIS,Al Quaeda,Pakistan) are put in a mixer with no begging and no end. There are many plotholes and some times is slow paced. It is so tiring that i hardly kept myself of not falling asleep.

There are some good action scenes. Many collateral plots running together made the movie complicated. Nothing to compare to the Convenant. I'd rather compare it to "Plane",Buttler's previous movie.

Really,does Hollywood lacks of military and geostrategical advisors?

The scenario is like it is written by a 10 years old kid.

The duration should be max 90' no more because it is too tiring. It is from the kind of movies that i'd expect from netflix,and i would watch it only once.

Strong plot and promising action but falls short. Worth viewing if you like this type of film or Butler in general.

Butler's 'Tom Harris' and Fimmel's 'Roman' were strong, they provided high points. Bagheri's 'Parshand' didn't hit the mark.

Action scenes had moments of awesome. But odd timing of starts/stops during sequences made them confusing. Particularly when Roman rolls out of the vehicle during a pursuit scene.

Parshand pursuing main characters endlessly through the desert on a low range motorcycle was odd and not believable enough. Character did not seem ruthless. His scenes subtracted from the overall concept I was expecting and hoping for.

This is a perfectly good movie. The comparisons to The Covenant, Guy Ritchie's movie with Jake Gyllenhaal are understandable, and while there are some similarities, it is not a like for like by any means. There are in fact many differences. I won't spell them out for fear of giving spoilers, but if you watch both movies you will get my point. Gerard Butler does seem to be the go to guy for an awful lot of action movies over the last five plus years, but there is a good reason for that. He meets the requirements of a Hollywood hero very well; handsome, likeable, tough and and pretty decent actor for the most part. I enjoyed the movie and would recommend to anyone who likes action/military type movies.