Monday, December 24, 2007

The Fourth Essence !

Last night at 10:25 I saw Kite Runner (2007) directed by Marc Forster, based on a great book by Khaled Hosseini. I always said that in many ways Cinema is in a great debt to literature. This debt becomes greater when it comes to a script adaptation. So I say the best way to see a movie based on a book is to consciously ignore the book and hear the story one more time through moving images, as if we hear it for the first time. I’ll write more about Kite Runner (2007) but for now: The performances are very good considering the bilingual script. Ahmad Khan Mahmidzada (Hassan) is outstanding; a young boy with a warm face and a smile that fills the screen. Also Homayoun Ershadi’s (Baba) witty dialogue stays with you long after the movie is finished. Conclusion: See it.

The forgotten Number 2 from the previous post: Brooklyn college students won their battle against Censorship. The Brooklyn College graduate art exhibition got closed last year by the Brooklyn War Memorial, where the exhibition was held. The Students sued the city for the violation of their civil rights and they won. Now the city should give the students a written apology from Spiegel plus $750 per students plus $42,500 to cover legal expenses. My source of information was Art News September issue. I meant to write about it for more than 3 months and I kept forgetting it.

This Christmas just happens to be very similar to many Christmases that I’ve seen back home; sitting at the dining room table, surfing the web and watching a movie on TV: But not every movie, Charles Dickens classic tale, A Christmas Carol. When I was a kid, each year they showed Mickey’s Christmas Carol, in Iran. Tonight my fate is the same with a minor difference. I am watching A Christmas Carol movie of 1938 instead of the animation one. I love this one: in the 1938 movie, Scrooge's nephew offers Mr. Cratchit a bottle of Port and says "Port is the fourth essence of Christmas spirit."


Kite Runner directed by Marc Forster 2007




4 comments:

jeerjeerak said...

I read the farsi translation of the book this summer and recently listened to the audiobook read by khaled hosseini himself. I liked his newer book too. I'll wait patiently for the movie to get to our village here! The same way i'm waiting for Perspolis.

have a merry christmas roja jan:)

Nazy said...

Happy Holidays sweet Roja:

I hope you had a relaxing day, as I did, all by myself and taking care of neglected chores, reading, and writing. I want to go see the Kite Runner this week. I will report my findings! Kisses and take care my friend.

Miz BoheMia said...

I am starting to recognize some fellow bloggers as I make my rounds into the world of Iranian bloggers (which I am delighted to see is so wide though, alas, I read not Farsi so I am limited to y'all who write in English! :-) ).

I am part Iranian/ part Danish but raised between Spain and the US (though I have been in Denmark on and off throughout my life but not Iran as we left when I was barely 2) so Christmas is celebrated on Christmas Eve and quite the big deal per my Danish side... but at this point, more fun for the kids anyway which is as it should be I suppose.

A girlfriend of mine has highly recommended the book to me so I may just have to squeeze some time into my life and attempt to read it! Loved your review and would love to hear more about it...

Tameshk said...

Dearest Jeerjeerak

I didn't know the audio is by Khaled Hosseini, That should be fun to listen to! I want to see Persepolis too; Only one theater shows it around our Village ;) so I have to be quick.

Nazy Joonam

I cannot wait to see what do you think of Kite Runner the movie. I've missed you terribly! ;(


Dear Miz Bohemia

Thanks for your comment; you sure have a very interesting background! The book is good! his second book A Thousand Splendid Suns is also an interesting book.