by Iain Blair

Went to a special screening of Mongol the other night at the Landmark. Mongol, which received an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film, was directed by Russian filmmaker Sergei Bodrov (Prisoner of the Mountains), and tells the story and legend of Genghis Khan. Based on leading scholarly accounts, and written by Bodrov and Arif Aliyev, Mongol delves into the dramatic and harrowing early years of the ruler who was born as Temudgin in 1162. As it follows Temudgin from his perilous childhood to the battle that sealed his destiny, the film paints a multidimensional portrait of the future conqueror, revealing him not as the evil brute of hoary stereotype, but as an inspiring, fearless and visionary leader. After the screening, I chatted with Bodrov, who told me that making the film was “so tough, as we shot it all on location in very remote parts of Mongolia, China and Kazakhstan.” With thousands of extras and horses for the battle scenes, Bodrov and his crew also had to deal with “15 different languages. We shot for over six months, as we also needed summer and winter locations.” The result is one of the most visually beautiful films I’ve seen in years, and hopefully it’ll find an audience in the States. Picturehouse will be releasing this rated R film in Mongolian with English subtitles in 2008.

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