VOA常速英语2007年-Controversial Film 'The Kite Runner' Hits Movie

By Alan Silverman
Los Angeles
12 December 2007

Novelist Khaled Hosseini's international best-seller set in 1970s Afghanistan and present-day America has been made into a Hollywood studio movie. Alan Silverman spoke¹ with the author and cast members for this look at "The Kite Runner:"

Afghan-born Amir is a newly-published author living in California; but the telephone call from an old family friend takes him back to his childhood in 1970s Kabul. There are happy memories of the time before the city was ravaged² by battles with Soviet³ forces and the subsequent Taliban takeover: happy memories of children flying colorful kites high over the city rooftops.

"Amir, I am going to run that blue kite for you," says his dearest childhood friend Hassan. As Hassan begins his dash through the streets to chase the falling kite, he turns to Amir and says "for you, a thousand times over." It is a fateful day that will change both of their lives forever: Amir, the son of a wealthy intellectual and Hassan, the child of their housekeeper⁴.

The Kite Runner is a adapted from the novel published in 2003 and author Khaled Hosseini says the kites are more about memory than metaphor⁵.

"To me, it is just a symbol of my childhood. I grew up flying kites in Kabul. That's what I did. That's what my brother and my cousins ...we all did. In fact, the kite came before anything else, even before the characters," Hosseini says. "Everybody who reads fiction will see their own things. There is no right or wrong answer, but for me they will always represent that bygone, much more innocent era in Afghanistan and to me they are kind of these harbingers of hope in the story.

Innocence⁶ is lost when young Hassan, running after the kite, is cornered and brutally⁷ raped⁸ by neighborhood bullies⁹ as Amir cowers¹⁰ nearby - unable, or unwilling¹¹, to help his loyal friend. The emotionally wrenching¹² scene, although not shown in graphic¹³ detail, nevertheless caused the father of the Afghan child actor who plays Hassan to worry, publicly, that its showing could put them in danger. The Paramount¹⁴ subsidiary DreamWorks, the American studio that financed the film, postponed¹⁵ its release date for a month so children and their families could be moved to a safe location. Author Hosseini says the controversial scene could not be cut.

"That scene is pivotal to the story. I didn't see any other way," he says. "From a plot standpoint, that scene is important because that is when Amir is seared for life; and ultimately the film is not about that. It is about friendship, forgiveness, redemption, regret. I think the film, seen in its entirety, is not at all about sexual abuse and that sort of thing.

Khalid Abdalla stars as adult Amir. The British-born actor, whose parents are Egyptian, learned to speak Dari for the role and says the relationships in The Kite Runner cross cultural lines.

"To me it feels like a normal, troubled relationship between a father and son," he said. "In fact, I think one of the reasons that the story is so affecting is because there is a journey in it that so many people recognize: that desire to have your father be proud of you."

While political upheaval¹⁶ provides the backdrop and drives some aspects of the story, Iranian screen star Homayoun Ershadi, who plays the intellectual and coldly distant father, considers it a universal story.

"No, it is not a political film at all," he says. "I think it is about a family and, regardless of what culture you have or what religion you have, it is international. You talk about love, redemption, hate, guilt¹⁷ ...these things are international subjects."

Author Khaled Hosseini hopes it can help provide an emotional connection across cultural and political lines ...and he sees the film as a significant advance in how Hollywood portrays¹⁸ Muslims.

"One of the things that I'm very proud of in 'The Kite Runner' is that it's a film populated entirely¹⁹ by Muslim characters and whose faith is almost incidental to their existence," he said. "They are in the film and don't feel represented by the likes of him. I think it's a very important thing [and] for Hollywood it's really a first. I can't remember the last time a mainstream²⁰ Hollywood film made up entirely of Muslim characters and had this kind of message, where the reason they exist is not terrorism, not radical²¹ beliefs or violence and fanaticism²², but they are just people."

Director Marc Forster insisted on making the film almost entirely in the Dari language of Afghanistan. Hosseini, who wrote the novel in English, applauds the director's choice.

"This would have been a completely different movie if you have these characters speaking in English," he said. "I think part of the reason this film is going to connect with people is that you see these characters speaking their indigenous²³ language and it really has the ability to transport you to that world of 1970s Afghanistan ...and you believe it."

"It is better to forget" says the driver and guide to Amir, who has returned to Kabul. Amir responds: "I don't want to forget anymore."

The Kite Runner features many Afghani actors, but was filmed in and around Kashgar in Western China's Xinjiang province that borders Afghanistan. The script, adapted from the novel, is by American screenwriter David Benioff. The soundtrack music is by Spanish composer Alberto Iglesias.

1 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

2 ravaged   

毁坏( ravage的过去式和过去分词 )； 蹂躏； 劫掠； 抢劫

参考例句：

• a country ravaged by civil war 遭受内战重创的国家
• The whole area was ravaged by forest fires. 森林火灾使整个地区荒废了。

3 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

4 housekeeper   

n.管理家务的主妇，女管家

参考例句：

• A spotless stove told us that his mother is a diligent housekeeper.炉子清洁无瑕就表明他母亲是个勤劳的主妇。
• She is an economical housekeeper and feeds her family cheaply.她节约持家，一家人吃得很省。

5 metaphor   

n.隐喻，暗喻

参考例句：

• Using metaphor,we say that computers have senses and a memory.打个比方，我们可以说计算机有感觉和记忆力。
• In poetry the rose is often a metaphor for love.玫瑰在诗中通常作为爱的象征。

6 innocence   

n.无罪；天真；无害

参考例句：

• There was a touching air of innocence about the boy.这个男孩有一种令人感动的天真神情。
• The accused man proved his innocence of the crime.被告人经证实无罪。

7 brutally   

adv.残忍地，野蛮地，冷酷无情地

参考例句：

• The uprising was brutally put down.起义被残酷地镇压下去了。
• A pro-democracy uprising was brutally suppressed.一场争取民主的起义被残酷镇压了。

8 raped   

v.以暴力夺取，强夺( rape的过去式和过去分词 )；强奸

参考例句：

• A young woman was brutally raped in her own home. 一名年轻女子在自己家中惨遭强暴。 来自辞典例句
• We got stick together, or we will be having our women raped. 我们得团结一致，不然我们的妻女就会遭到蹂躏。 来自辞典例句

9 bullies   

n.欺凌弱小者, 开球 vt.恐吓, 威胁, 欺负

参考例句：

• Standing up to bullies takes plenty of backbone. 勇敢地对付暴徒需有大无畏精神。
• Bullies can make your life hell. 恃强欺弱者能让你的日子像活地狱。

10 cowers   

v.畏缩，抖缩( cower的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

11 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

12 wrenching   

n.修截苗根，苗木铲根（铲根时苗木不起土或部分起土）v.（猛力地）扭( wrench的现在分词 )；扭伤；使感到痛苦；使悲痛

参考例句：

• China has been through a wrenching series of changes and experiments. 中国经历了一系列艰苦的变革和试验。 来自辞典例句
• A cold gust swept across her exposed breast, wrenching her back to reality. 一股寒气打击她的敞开的胸膛，把她从梦幻的境地中带了回来。 来自汉英文学 - 家（1-26） - 家（1-26）

13 graphic   

adj.生动的，形象的，绘画的，文字的，图表的

参考例句：

• The book gave a graphic description of the war.这本书生动地描述了战争的情况。
• Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons.用图标来区分重要的文本项。

14 paramount   

a.最重要的，最高权力的

参考例句：

• My paramount object is to save the Union and destroy slavery.我的最高目标是拯救美国，摧毁奴隶制度。
• Nitrogen is of paramount importance to life on earth.氮对地球上的生命至关重要。

15 postponed   

vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发）

参考例句：

• The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
• The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。

16 upheaval   

n.胀起，(地壳)的隆起；剧变，动乱

参考例句：

• It was faced with the greatest social upheaval since World War Ⅱ.它面临第二次世界大战以来最大的社会动乱。
• The country has been thrown into an upheaval.这个国家已经陷入动乱之中。

17 guilt   

n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责

参考例句：

• She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。
• Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。

18 portrays   

v.画像( portray的第三人称单数 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• The museum collection vividly portrays the heritage of 200 years of canals. 博物馆的藏品让运河200 年的历史再现眼前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The film portrays Gandhi as a kind of superman. 这部电影把甘地描绘成一个超人。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

20 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。

21 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

22 fanaticism   

n.狂热，盲信

参考例句：

• Your fanaticism followed the girl is wrong. 你对那个女孩的狂热是错误的。
• All of Goebbels's speeches sounded the note of stereotyped fanaticism. 戈培尔的演讲，千篇一律，无非狂热二字。

23 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。