Gerard Butler action flick 'Kandahar' is summer's first surprise
“Kandahar” is a dumb movie with lots of smart ideas.
It is populated with the usual gaggle of operatives, mercenaries and mustached villains who nonetheless contain informed, world-weary personalities that betray cliches.
While most Hollywood products keep their politics vague, this film dives in head-first with an articulated point-of-view. It might not be the pure action spectacle some crave, but I am here to report a surprisingly satisfying viewing experience.
The film opens in Iran, just outside a nuclear facility that some nameless Langley bureaucrat says “is operating outside of nonproliferation treaties.” Which, I mean, we all know it’s a little more complicated than that! Anyway, Tom Harris (Gerard Butler) is on the ground to make sure this enrichment plant goes offline for good. It works, but little does he know his cover is about to be blown as well.
Tom is one of those characters Butler is getting pretty good at playing. Someone unassuming, who seems like a regular Joe, but has that “certain set of skills” making him indispensable in a rough situation. Or lots of rough situations. No joke, this is the second Butler film of 2023 where someone watching from afar makes the observation: “I like him. This guy is good.” (Despite this, I would say the other film — “Plane” — is also good and something you should seek out this weekend.)
Certainly Butler appeals to the action market. While he is ruggedly handsome, Butler has a filled-in face with bags under his eyes and no shortage of wrinkles. There’s little vanity that comes with these performances and it makes him relatable.
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Not to mention his characters always have some distressed domestic situation brewing. Tom’s wife wants a divorce — “When are you going to sign these papers?” he is asked over the phone — and his daughter expects him to be home from this covert mission for graduation.
But his handler wants him to go back to Iran, via Afghanistan, for one quick mission. We even get one of those funny scenes where the handler throws stacks of hundred-dollar bills on a table and says “you just tell me where to stop!”
Off to Afghanistan he goes, where he learns his identity has leaked to the world. Now paired with translator Mohammed (Navid Negahban), they must abandon their mission and get to the titular city in order to be transported out of the country. Our spy thriller now hits the road.
No small task, as it's explained that the pull-out of American troops turned the country into a Wild West of “Pakis, Russians, Chinese, and anyone else trying to make a mark.” The Iranians show up looking for revenge. A Pakistani intelligence agent is on the trail with the intent of selling the two “to the highest bidder.” The newly-installed Taliban wants to assist anyone willing to grease the wheels of corruption.
A mad-cap dash with shoot-outs, explosions, and car chases ensues. In between all this red meat, we learn about the characters’ histories and philosophies. Mohammed, in essence, becomes the Afghanistan Everyman left behind by the West. The audience hears of his sacrifices, losses and anger.
Butler’s face takes the emotional brunt and we see the pain in his eyes. He, in turn, becomes a stand-in for White Guilt.
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“Kandahar” doesn’t seek blame. Not necessarily. The film is smart enough to know America’s prolonged efforts to stabilize Afghanistan were a bit of a folly. That the Taliban were playing a waiting game and it was only a matter of time. That parts of the world are going to reject any “liberal democracy” hoisted upon them. The script says so much — not as moral proclamations, but reflections of the lives of the characters.
“Wars of the past were fought for spoils,” Tom says at one point. “Modern wars are not meant to be won at all.” A provocative comment I’m not totally sure I’ve worked out in my head (I have some theories and anyone can buy me a beer to go over them); but I’ve not stopped thinking about it since my screening. If anything, it’s not the pro-war jingoism you see in a lot of films like this.
The ending of “Kandahar” plays like wish fulfillment, seeking to redeem the abandonment of the Afghan people to the forces of violence and corruption. This would feel trite if the film had not done such good character work.
By the time the winding road to Kandahar is reached, we have come to know our mismatched team and the audience cares about the outcome. In a modern culture where films sacrifice themselves for over-the-top action at the expense of story and emotion, this film feels like a welcomed exception.
If the idea of a Gerard Butler action flick doesn’t sound like your thing, give “Kandahar” a shot anyway. It’s the type of smart Hollywood product deserving your support.
James Owen is the Tribune’s film columnist. In real life, he is a lawyer and executive director of energy policy group Renew Missouri. A graduate of Drury University and the University of Kansas, he created Filmsnobs.com, where he co-hosts a podcast. He enjoyed an extended stint as an on-air film critic for KY3, the NBC affiliate in Springfield, and now regularly guests on Columbia radio station KFRU.
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Gerard Butler action flick 'Kandahar' is summer's first surprise
