Kandahar (2023)

Gerard Butler is aging into his grizzled action-hero era with the kind of rugged charisma that feels increasingly rare. In the 1960s, he’d have been a natural fit for *The Great Escape*. In the '80s, he might have been Chuck Norris—with better acting chops. But this is 2023, and Butler remains a dependable presence in *Kandahar*, a gritty throwback to the Tom Clancy-style techno-thrillers of the '90s and early 2000s.

In *Kandahar*, Butler plays Tom Harris, a former MI6 operative now freelancing for the CIA. The film kicks off with a covert operation that sees him helping destroy an Iranian nuclear facility. But things go sideways during his next mission in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan when a British journalist (Nina Toussaint-White, regrettably underused) accidentally blows his cover after receiving classified documents.

From there, Tom and his interpreter, Mohammad (Navid Negahban, *Aladdin*), become prime targets—not just for the Taliban, but also for an Iranian intelligence agent (Bahador Foladi) and a Pakistani operative (Ali Fazal of *Furious 7* and *Death on the Nile*).

Director Ric Roman Waugh, reuniting with Butler after *Angel Has Fallen* and *Greenland*, brings a sense of authenticity and grounded tension to the film. Screenwriter Mitchell LaFortune, himself a former intelligence officer, crafts a story where no side is painted as purely good or evil—just factions executing the directives of the systems they serve. Even Tom, hardened by years of covert work, reflects on the moral ambiguities of his job. “We rely on you guys for languages, culture,” he tells Mohammad. “You risk your lives for us, and then we tell you what your country should look like. Half the time, we don’t even say thank you.”

*Kandahar* gains additional weight from its setting. Shot primarily in Saudi Arabia, the film conveys a tangible sense of place, whether depicting a bustling town, a military outpost, or the unforgiving desert. It also strives—however modestly—to be culturally respectful, including a moment of Muslim prayer that offers a rare pause in the action.

That said, this is still a Western-made action thriller. While it gestures toward nuance, *Kandahar* is not politically or culturally complex. Like Butler’s earlier 2023 outing *Plane*, it’s an efficiently crafted genre film: tight, suspenseful, and anchored by set pieces like a hectic bazaar car chase and a night-vision firefight with a helicopter.

In the end, *Kandahar* reiterates a familiar message found in many American action films—that diplomacy, more often than not, arrives at the end of a rifle. But with Butler at the helm, bloodied and brooding, it makes for a solid and engaging ride.