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MovieMail's Review
Bodrov’s epic, Oscar-nominated historical drama was one of the few foreign-language movies to find large audiences this summer. Mongol introduces us to the young Genghis, aka Temudjin, who as a child saw his father poisoned by a rival tribe, and was thereafter pursued by those who sought to assume power.
If you’re wondering how anyone might make Genghis heroic, it’s partly by making his enemies even more brutal, and partly by characterising the adult Temudjin (Japanese megastar Tadanobu Asano) in much the same way as Mel Gibson’s Braveheart did William Wallace: as a lover, not a fighter, only driven to bloodshed when his girl is threatened.
Like Gibson, Bodrov relishes battlefield carnage, but there’s also genuine poetry here, with the screen frequently given over to the incredible Mongolian landscape that lends itself well to spectacular cinematography. Further instalments are promised: get in early on what may become the arthouse superhero/villain franchise of the decade!
The first revelation of Sergei Bodrov's Oscar-nominated historical drama – one of the few foreign-language movies to find large audiences this summer – is that Genghis Khan was a stage name. Mongol introduces us to the young Genghis, aka Temudjin, who as a child saw his father poisoned by a rival tribe, and was thereafter pursued by those who sought to assume power.
If you’re wondering how anyone might make Genghis heroic, it’s partly by making his enemies even more brutal, and partly by characterising the adult Temudjin (Japanese megastar Tadanobu Asano) in much the same way as Mel Gibson’s Braveheart did William Wallace: as a lover, not a fighter, only driven to bloodshed when his girl is threatened.
Like Gibson, Bodrov relishes battlefield carnage, but there’s genuine poetry here, too: so frequently is the screen given over to the Mongolian landscape the film might legitimately trade under the alternative title The Thirty-Nine Steppes. Further instalments are promised: get in early on what may just become the arthouse superhero (or super-villain) franchise of the decade.
Historical epic that covers the early life of the legendary Mongolian leader Genghis Khan. The first part of a planned trilogy, the film focuses on the future ruler's brutal childhood, as he suffers starvation and slavery, through to the battle that would cement his power. Inspired by a poem translated from the Chinese that supposedly tells of Khan's formative years, director Sergei Bodrov ('Prisoner of the Mountains') offers a multidimensional portrait of the conqueror, focusing on the deep relationship he had with his beloved Borte (Khulan Chuluun), who was not only his wife, but his most trusted advisor.
