Kites
Release Date: May 21, 2010 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
62
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 13 Critic Reviews
Positive:
7
Mixed:
6
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
VarietyPeter Debruge
The deliriously entertaining and shamelessly derivative Hindi Kites owes more to Hollywood than Bollywood, though director Anurag Basu borrows plenty from both, aiming to give Indian song-and-dance pics the same sort of crossover success "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" did for Asian martial-arts movies. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
In its telling, the love story draws from westerns, musicals, film noir, chase thrillers with stunts so preposterous they verge on parody -- and it gets away with everything because of Basu's visual bravura and unstinting passion and energy. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
It tells a simple story - an almost archetypal story - but it does so with a lot of passion and technical sophistication. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterLisa Tsering
What makes the movie pop is a standout performance by Roshan, one of Indian cinema's treasures. Read full review
70
The New York TimesJeannette Catsoulis
The result is a lovers-on-the-lam blast of pure pulp escapism, so devoted to diversion that you probably won’t even notice the corn. Read full review
67
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
It's a romantic noir chase thriller made in the violently schlocky spirit of Sam Peckinpah's "The Getaway." Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubTasha Robinson
The results are too often ridiculously excessive--Kites generally reads like the Jerry Bruckheimer version of "Slumdog Millionaire"--but to anyone versed in Bollywood conventions, it’s a natural outgrowth of the genre, and a comically overwrought but still generally fun time. Read full review
60
Village VoiceDavid Chute
Not even the incoherent mish-mash of plot (mostly faux Sergio Leone by way of Tarantino and Rodriguez, with periodic car-flipping chase sequences) can entirely dim the appeal of this match-up between a blue-eyed Punjabi and a blue-eyed Mexican of almost equal comeliness. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsElizabeth Weitzman
Melodrama, romance and action are cheerfully jumbled together, so as long as you're ready to embrace the excess of swoony sentimentality, you'll get more than your money's worth. Read full review
60
Boxoffice MagazineTim Cogshell
Bolly-Holly-Tele-Novella heaven, in three languages. Read full review
60
Time OutNick Schager
Cribbing from countless Tinseltown efforts, this music-video-cum-perfume-ad is awash in excessively melodramatic flashbacks, car chases and references to the domestic illegal-immigration debate. Read full review
50
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
Tonally, the film from director Anurag Basu has more personalities than Sybil. Basu strictly observes the B-movie convention of giving the audience an embrace, explosion, or chase sequence at regular intervals. If you don't like the genre, wait three minutes. Read full review
50
Austin ChronicleMarjorie Baumgarten
The story is so meandering and unbelievable that Westerners are still likely to roll their eyes. I have no idea what Indian audiences will make of Kites. The film is rousing, but it does not soar. Read full review
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62 Critic Reviews

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