- 9
How long has it been since you saw a movie that succeeds as pure story? That doesn't depend on stars, effects or genres, but simply fascinates you with how it will turn out? Marc Forster's The Kite Runner, based on a much-loved novel, is a movie like that.
—Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times
- 8
...a poignant, intimate epic, which should attract a strong following among discerning audiences.
—Alissa Simon Variety
- 8
...a best-selling book that absolutely soars and takes flight as a first-class piece of filmmaking.
—Pete Hammond Maxim
- 7
Will these wrenching acts, coupled with dialogue spoken in Dari (with English subtitles), keep audiences away? My guess is that Kite is a film they'll take to heart.
—Peter Travers Rolling Stone
- 7
In making a movie about the hot mess of Afghan history, a sense of reserve turns out to be a useful tool for peace.
—Lisa Schwarzbaum Entertainment Weekly
- 7
...sometimes powerful, sometimes painful and sometimes just painfully slow...
—Chris Farnsworth E!
- 7
...wreathed in good intentions and Oscar aspirations, often rises to the occasion, though it never quite soars.
—Lou Lumenick New York Post
- 7
...the film manages the difficult task of tracking massive historical upheavals while keeping tightly focused on the people forced to live through such tumultuous changes.
—Chris Barsanti Reel
- 6
...the film manages the difficult task of tracking massive historical upheavals while keeping tightly focused on the people forced to live through such tumultuous changes.
—Chris Barsanti filmcritic.com
- 6
...too manipulative in the plotting...
—Leah Rozen People
- 5
...confirms Marc Forster as the Michael Bay of movie dramas.
—Keith Phipps Onion AV Club
- 5
The back of my paperback copy of this Khaled Hosseini novel is sprinkled with words like "powerful" and "haunting" and "riveting" and "unforgettable." It's a good guess that this film will be rolled around in a similarly large helping of lard.
—Manohla Dargis New York Times
- 5
...skimps on the book's real value ...in favor of bland melodrama and absurd dramatics.
—Ken Fox TV Guide
- 5
...has its moments, but to reach them requires a strong stomach for artless manipulation and an unnatural fascination with watching people fly kites that aren't really there.
—Ryan Stewart Premiere
- 5
...a house divided against itself.
—Kenneth Turan Los Angeles Times
- 5
Since seeing it first at the Chicago International Film Festival, and again more recently, I have struggled with my reasons for resisting the screen version.
—Michael Phillips Chicago Tribune
- 4
...flaccid...
—Ella Taylor Village Voice
- 4
...flaccid...
—Ella Taylor LA Weekly
- 3
...made me wonder if Paramount Vantage, in pushing the film's release date, should be worrying more about Forster's wellbeing than the safety of the director's young cast.
—Ed Gonzalez Slant Magazine