Introduction : haunted eyes -- Imperialist nostalgia. Getting in touch with our inner savage : The horsemen -- Butch and Sundance in Afghanistan : The man who would be king -- The new great game : Rambo III, The beast, and Charlie Wilson's war -- The burqa films. Land without images : Kandahar -- Afghan gothic : Osama -- Border crossings. The west unveiled : In this world -- The poetry of silence : Ellipsis -- A way to feel good again : The kite runner -- Conclusion : ending Charlie Wilson's war