Khan-ivore

Based on historic and scholarly accounts Mongol is a dramatic recounting of the early life of the infamous warlord and ruler Genghis Khan.

Nominated for Best Foreign Language film at this years Oscars, the film is an inspirational and often harrowing look at a historical figure that has too long been surrounded in both mysticism and brutality.

The movie follows the young Genghis, named Temudgin, (played by Japanese actor Asano Tadanobu) from his perilous childhood through the battles that sealed his destiny and the creation of a nation that would go on to conquer half the known world.

The film paints a multidimensional portrait of the future conqueror, revealing him not as an evil brute or killing machine, but as an inspiring, fearless and visionary leader. The story acts not as a blood and guts rampage (though there is plenty of this too) but also as a timeless love story between Genghis and his long suffering wife, Borte (Honglei Sun).

The plot is pretty straightforward. Temudgin's father, a Khan (clan leader), is assassinated, Temudgin is taken prisoner and threatened with murder. He escapes with the help of a mysterious old man, and flees the clan. The rest of the film chronicles his remarkable journey home through imprisonment and slavery to take back what is rightfully his, and then some.

The movie is a lesson in epic filmmaking as the cinematography is breathtaking and fresh. The battle scenes, while not gruesomely violent are intense and beautifully choreographed. The battles may not be able to compete with other Hollywood epics but the film surpasses other big budget ‘epics’ such as Alexander and Kingdom of Heaven for a faction of the price.

Russian Director, Sergei Bodrov (Nightwatch), limited use of CGI acts as a reminder of Hollywood’s current reliance on the technology to create their epic productions. Bodrovs real talent however, lies not in his portrayal of a historic character but in his depiction of a landscape and a people.