Kandahar (DVD)

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Starring Gerard Butler, Ali Fazal, Bahador Foladi, Olivia-Mai Barrett, Rebecca Calder, Navid Negahban, Travis Fimmel, Nina Toussaint-White, Tom Rhys Harries, Vassilis Koukalani, Hakeem Jomah, Ray Haratian, Farzad Bagheri, Fahim Fazli, Lee Comley, Corey Johnson, Najia Khaan, and Darius Radac. Ali Fazal and Navid Negahban joined the cast in December 2021. Majority of filming commenced on December 2, 2021 in Saudi Arabia. This made the film the first big-budget U.S. feature to shoot in the country's Al-Ula and Jeddah. [9] Nina Toussaint-White and Bahador Foladi joined the cast later that same month. [10] Filming wrapped in January 2022. [11] The production takes advantage of Saudi Film Commission's 40% cash rebate. [12] Release [ edit ] Wiseman, Andreas (December 2, 2021). "Gerard Butler Action Movie 'Kandahar' Begins Filming In Saudi Arabia; Ali Fazal & Navid Negahban Join Cast". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved March 3, 2022.

Filming began in November 2021 and is expected to last until the end of this month. 'Desert Warrior' (Rupert Wyatt, 2022) Pivotal to the kingdom’s success as a truly global production hub, though, is its desire to attract big-name international productions that will put it on the map and etch the image of Saudi Arabia into the minds of global audiences. Jeremy Irons and Tobin Bell (aka Jigsaw from the Saw franchise) star in this forthcoming period horror from Saw II to IV and Spiral director Bousman. Saudi Arabia may have only recently started establishing itself as a media production hub, but it’s not a total stranger to international cinema. Director Spike Lee’s 1992 biopic of the influential civil rights activist Malcolm X was shot in the kingdom as long ago as 1992.

There is about 20 mins to be cut from this, but it has enough going for it that I can forgive the draggy parts, and appreciate the attempt at substance. a b Wiseman, Andreas (June 22, 2020). "Gerard Butler Re-Teams With 'Angel Has Fallen' Director Ric Roman Waugh For Thunder Road Action Pic 'Kandahar' — Cannes". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved March 3, 2022.

The Ric Roman Waugh-directed feature joins other big theatrical titles over the four-day holiday like Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Lionsgate’s Sebastian Maniscalco-Robert De Niro movie About My Father, and Sony’s action comedy The Machine. You know, there is an interesting subplot going on with Mo searching for his sister, who was a teacher abducted by the Taliban and hasn’t been heard from since. That is a mystery worth getting invested in, not whatever Kandahar is. Stories about the West at war with Brown people peaked with Kathryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty(Although I also enjoyed Nicolai Fuglsig’s 12 Strong). Maybe there is something about chronicling history based on actual events that hold something over these made-up western savior narratives that have nothing going for them except to be monotonous, xenophobic and a complete bore. The shoot was the first time any non-documentary, or indeed any American film, had been permitted to film in the Holy City of Makkah. The Saudi sections of the film deal with Malcolm, played by Denzel Washington, performing his Hajj in 1964, although the scenes were almost filmed in a stand-in set in New Jersey.EXCLUSIVE: Add another wide release to the 2023 theatrical calendar as Open Road has just dated the Gerard Butler action movie Kandaharfor May 26, Memorial Day weekend. The film is a truly international affair, and although the big names attached are British and American, Cello also features cast and crew from France, Italy, Canada and across the Middle East. a b D'Alessandro, Anthony (January 25, 2023). "Open Road's Gerard Butler Pic 'Kandahar' Sets Memorial Day Weekend Release". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved January 25, 2023. D'Alessandro, Anthony (July 31, 2020). "Mitchell LaFortune, Scribe Of Gerard Butler's 'Kandahar', Signs With APA". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved January 30, 2023. Wiseman, Andreas (December 2, 2021). " 'Kandahar': Gerard Butler Action Pic Adds Nina Toussaint-White & Bahador Foladi". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved March 3, 2022.

The film stars Moroccan actor Chems-Eddine Zinoune as Battuta and is narrated by Ben Kingsley. It follows Battuta from his native Morocco to Makkah, meeting Bedouins, bandits and fellow pilgrims on the way.

The first Hollywood project as a result of Film AlUla's efforts was the Russo Brothers’ Cherry, which stars Tom Holland as a PTSD-suffering Iraq veteran who turns to robbing banks to fund his and his wife’s opioid addiction. Starring: Gerard Butler , Bahador Foladi , Navid Negahban , Elnaaz Norouzi , Rebecca Calder , Ali Fazal I promise I don’t have anything against this type of movie. I take issue with so many of them not being worth watching. For Kandahar to be called an action film, there should be action. Look, there isn’t much more to say about it except it will induce so many eye rolls you might see your brain stem in the process because watching through the whole 2-hour runtime is its own hostage situation.

Screenwriter Mitchell LaFortune wrote the film based on own experiences as a military intelligence officer during the Edward Snowden leaks (9/25/2022). Tom Harris is a freelance undercover operative working for the CIA to insert malware into an Iranian nuclear research facility. Tom's cover is a field technician for a Swiss communications contractor. His mission is successful, and the malware causes the facility to self destruct, preventing the Iranians from acquiring more nuclear bombs.

a b Wiseman, Andreas (September 21, 2022). "Open Road Lands U.S. Rights To Gerard Butler Action Pic 'Kandahar' In Eight-Figure Deal". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved September 21, 2022. Bruce Neibaur’s Imax docudrama makes full use of the giant screen technology to bring the epic desert landscapes of 14th-century Islamic explorer Ibn Battuta to life. Busch, Anita (June 6, 2016). " 'Burn Run' From Former Intelligence Officer Sells To Thunder Road Pictures". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved January 30, 2023.