Aayush Sharma
Based on the real-life experience of former intelligence officer Mitchell LaFortune, ‘Kandahar’ tells the gripping tale of an undercover agent who tries to escape a hostile country after his real identity emerges in public. The movie, written by LaFortune and directed by Ric Roman Waugh, follows Tom Harris, who is working as a spy for the CIA in Iran, and is trying to get more details about the nation’s nuclear program. He and his colleague, Oliver, do their work precisely. However, their task is not just to send information to the CIA, but to blow up one of the country’s biggest nuclear facilities. Although they manage to accomplish their mission and Tom gets out of the country, this is just the beginning. The CIA is getting ready to do something bigger. For that, Tom has to be at his best, and with Iranian forces on his back, he doesn’t have much time to complete the task and head home. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Kandahar Plot Synopsis
The movie begins with two technicians from Siblixt Communications doing routine maintenance of Iran’s secret nuclear facility. One of the technicians installs a gadget on the wiring and manages to get out of the situation. Soon, it is clear that both technicians are undercover agents working for the CIA. One of them is Tom Harris (Gerard Butler), a freelance undercover operative who inserts malware into the nuclear facility. His mission is successful when the malware corrupts the central system of the building. It self-destructs and prevents the Iranians from moving ahead with their nuclear program. On the other hand, a British journalist named Luna Cujai (Nina Toussaint-White) receives evidence from a whistleblower that the CIA is trying to sabotage Iran’s nuclear program. However, the authorities are monitoring her and have arrested her for having classified information.
After finishing the work, Tom is ready to leave for London and be with his daughter, who is about to graduate. He manages to get out of Iran and reach Dubai, UAE. From there, he needs to take a flight to his home country. However, he finds that his flight is delayed and meets CIA handler, Roman Chalmers. During the meeting, Roman tells him that he is the reason why the flight is late because he wants to do some minor work before heading home. The handler reveals that the CIA is planning to destroy Iran’s entire nuclear program, and for that, they need to build an airstrip in Taybad so that they can attack. Initially hesitant to say yes to the mission, Tom accepts the offer when Roman offers him money that could help make his daughter’s future more secure. To complete the mission, he heads to Herat, Afghanistan, and meets a translator named Mohammad, aka Mo, who helps him understand the region and the local language.
However, it doesn’t take long for things to go wrong for the CIA Agent and the translator. According to an intelligence leak, the real name of Tom gets out to the public, and the Iranian forces know who to catch for the explosion at the nuclear facility. Roman calls Tom, telling him that he and his handler should leave Herat immediately and reach Kandahar. While they are getting ready to leave the place, a few Iranian personnel, including Farzad, are closely monitoring Tom and Mo. Moreover, Iran’s forces find Oliver and kill him. With Tom and Mo out in the open, it is pretty evident that military personnel from Iran are not the only ones searching for the secret agent. An ISI agent from Pakistan, Kahil, is also trying to get his hands on him, and his seniors are constantly telling him to get the spy. As the story progresses, Tom and Mo navigate dangerous situations to get to Kandahar, which is the only chance for them to reach home.
Kandahar Ending: Did Tom Make It Out of Kandahar?
The movie’s narrative primarily focuses on Tom Harris going undercover for the CIA to destroy one of Iran’s nuclear facilities. However, he soon realizes that his work is far from over. Apart from that, the agent is going through a lot in his personal life, and his wife wants to divorce him. Additionally, he has a daughter, who expects to see her father at the graduation ceremony. After completing his work in Iran, Tom prepares to fly to London and has a layover in Dubai. CIA handler Roman calls him and tells him to come for a meeting. Initially, the meeting seems ordinary, but soon, Tom realizes that Roman has called him to be a part of a bigger mission. They are planning to annihilate Iran’s entire nuclear program and attack it by making a covert airstrip across the Afghan border near Taybad. He reaches Herat and meets his handler, Mo, who knows the area well and speaks Dari and Pashto.
While they begin their work, they realize someone is watching them, and that person is working with Farzad, a member of the Iranian forces. That’s when Roman calls him and tells him that a breach in the Pentagon has exposed his real identity. Now, the world knows who is responsible for the explosion at the Iranian nuclear facility. Tom and Mo leave Herat, while Farzad and his men follow them. Meanwhile, Roman tells his seniors to get the agent and his handler out of the country. He reveals that Britain’s Special Air Service (SAS) is in Kandahar, and they are waiting for their plane to arrive to reach home. So Tom and Mo can join them and get to their respective homes. On the other hand, the duo manages to escape Farzad and his men, but Kahil continues to follow them. Tom gets off the main highway to confuse his enemies and takes the desert route. That’s where he tells the translator about the real mission and the covert airstrip in Taybad. He only knew that he would be a translator, but the mission terrifies him.
Farzad attacks them in a helicopter as they continue their journey at night. After their car crumbles under the enemy’s fire, Tom and Mo get out, with the secret agent attacking the helicopter with his gun. After a brief fight, Tom kills Farzad and his men. The next morning, Tom seeks aid from one of the warlords, Ismail, who is not associated with the Taliban. But things get eerie when Mo realizes that Ismail is the culprit of his son’s death in Afghanistan. Before escalating tension, Tom and Mo leave the warlord’s camp. However, he sells them out, and the Taliban captures them. While the Taliban soldiers beat them up, Afghan Special Forces commandos attacked their village by portraying themselves as members of ISIS-K. Roman is among them and manages to save both of them. They take a vehicle and finally reach Kandahar. But Kahil follows them, determined to complete his mission and capture Tom alive.
Fortunately, they get air support and are able to get away from Kahil and the Taliban fighters. They reach the airstrip where the Brits are waiting for them back home. In the final moments of the film, Mo reaches his home in the U.S. and reunites with his family. Meanwhile, Tom meets his daughter at the Gatwick airport and hugs her. After enduring relentless danger and betrayal, Tom and Mo finally make their way back home, carrying the weight of everything they have witnessed. The journey has changed them both and left scars. As they escape the mayhem behind them, the reunion with their loved ones not only heals them but also gives them a chance to rebuild their lives and find peace at last. Moreover, two men showcase their determination as they refuse to be broken despite overwhelming odds.
Is Roman Dead?
Apart from Tom and Mo, Roman Chalmers is another crucial part of the CIA’s plan. He is working as a handler for the CIA and is a Muslim convert living in Dubai as a socialite. He asks Tom to meet him when he is going home and asks him to do one final job. The job is to create a covert airstrip in Taybad and destroy Iran’s entire nuclear program. When Tom arrives, Roman tells him that he knows how he is returning to meet his daughter and sign the divorce papers. Still, the secret agent doesn’t want to be a part of it. However, when Roman says that he could do this for his daughter and take good money for it, he accepts. When Tom’s real identity comes to light, Roman calls his seniors and orders them to extract the agent from Afghanistan. Moreover, he reveals that he works for MI6 and that the organization has loaned him to the CIA. Initially, his senior says that they can’t bring him back.
Roman tells them that the UK’s Special Air Service (SAS) is in Kandahar and they can bring them back. The seniors agree to the plan, recognizing it as the best chance to extract Tom and Mo from hostile territory safely. As the duo continues their journey to Kandahar, Taliban fighters capture them after one of Tom’s acquaintances betrays them and reveals their location. As a result, the duo ends up in the Taliban’s captivity. Roman gets to know about their condition and teams up with the Afghan soldiers to get them out. They pose as ISIS-K fighters and attack the Taliban establishment. While the others continue the attack, Roman enters the establishment and rescues Tom. A few moments later, they both find Mo and leave for Kandahar. As they near the Kandahar airstrip, Kahil pounces on them.
Tom attacks Kahil’s vehicle by shooting at him, but the ISI agent strikes back and manages to injure Roman. He tells him to stay with him because they are about to reach. Roman, with a smile on his face, gets out of the moving car and tries to kill Kahil. However, Kahil manages to shoot him, and Roman dies. His sacrifice becomes a defining moment in Tom and Mo’s escape. Moreover, it is a testament to his unwavering commitment to the mission and protecting the duo. Even after hurting himself, he doesn’t back down and puts his body in the line of fire to give them a fighting chance. His final act is not just about duty; it is also about loyalty and friendship. Roman ensures that Tom and his translator can make it safely when giving up his life.
Did Kahil Die?
At first, the story reveals that the Iranian forces are after Tom. A few moments later, a new player enters the game, and his name is Kahil. He is an ISI agent who is working with the Taliban and wants them to move ahead with time. Personality-wise, he is different from Tom and is trying to find love by being on Tinder. However, he is as tough as Tom when it comes to work. One of his seniors tells him to catch Tom so that they can sell him in the open market and get a lot of money. As a result, he follows Tom and Mo to capture the CIA agent. He follows them through Herat but can’t manage to get to them. Moreover, he loses sight when Farzad and his men come between. Luckily, he gets to know where they went and follows them. In the desert, he meets a young boy and asks if he has seen the guy in the picture. The boy tells him that the man, Tom, and his friend are going to Delaram.
For Kahil, finding Tom is not just about completing the mission. He wants to get out of Afghanistan and go somewhere else. However, he needs to successfully capture Tom if he wants to go to a better location. Kahil contacts Rasoul, one of the Taliban soldiers, to catch Tom so that he can take him away. But when Afghan SF commandos attack the Taliban establishment disguised as ISIS-K fighters, Kahil realizes that he can meet Tom somewhere ahead. A few moments later, they meet, and the ISI agent is trying to stop him from reaching the airstrip. After killing Roman, he takes out his bike and gets to a high point from where he tells the Taliban fighters to attack Tom and Mo with mortars. One of the missiles hits their car, and although it badly damages the vehicle, they escape with only mild injuries. As a result, Kahil reaches their car and gets into a gun fight with Tom.
After taking a bullet at first, Tom injures Kahil, causing him to bleed from the neck. However, the dangerous situation continues for Tom and Mo because Taliban fighters are heading towards them. That’s when Tom’s seniors in the CIA provide air support to them and wreak havoc on the Taliban fighters by attacking them with missiles. As Tom and Mo’s plane takes off, Kahil lies in the sand, smiling as he tries to control his bleeding with what seems to be a gauze pad. The film leaves Kahil’s fate shrouded in uncertainty, showing him lying in the sand and clutching a makeshift bandage to his injury. The ending never indicates whether he succumbs to his wounds or survives.. His determination for the mission showcases his readiness to put everything on the line for his duty. Yet, the ambiguity about his survival keeps his character lingering after the credits roll in at the end.
Is Luna Cujai Let Go by Iran?
When Tom and his colleague Oliver destroy Iran’s nuclear facility, no one in the outside world knows who is behind the explosion. In the meantime, a British reporter named Luna Cujai is reporting from Amman about what’s happening in the Middle East. After the recording, she receives a file from a whistleblower that reveals the CIA’s secret operation to sabotage Iran’s nuclear program. The whistleblower says that no names should come out, and he wants the world to know that he is a patriot. As a result, Lune talks to the editor of the Der Herold Newspaper and tells him about the information. However, it seems the Iranian forces are monitoring her calls and have come to know about the classified information. While she is getting ready to go to Berlin to supervise the edits on the report, masked men enter her room and abduct her.
The Iranian forces take her into custody. Colonel Farzad, a soldier in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, questions her about the information she has regarding the attack on the nuclear facility. Before speaking about anything, he shows her a photo of her daughter and tells her to talk. She speaks about the company Siblixt and how it works exclusively near nuclear and military facilities. Farzad asks for names, and when she says she doesn’t know any names, he gets out of the chair and leaves the room. Luna pleads that she wants to go home. To which, Farzad replies that she will go home, but as a martyr. The newspaper prints the report, and it exposes Tom’s identity. As everything unravels, Tom and Mo board the plane to get out of Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, a senior official from the Iranian force takes Luna closer to the Iran-Pakistan border and lets her go, meaning she doesn’t die. Her journey in the film might be short, but it reflects a dangerous reality many journalists face when reporting on sensitive topics in a conflict zone or exposing something. Like countless newshounds, the journalist risks her freedom and life to unravel the truth. Meanwhile, her abduction and interrogation show how easily whistleblowers and reporters become victims in struggles related to geopolitics. Her portrayal also sheds light on the work that journalists and journalism do in exposing hidden stories. Even so, not everyone gets lucky in real life as she does in this story, and it reminds everyone how thin the line is between justice and silence for those who dare to speak out in front of the whole world.
Read More: Is Kandahar Based on a True Story?
