Review of Mongol: The Rise of Genghis Khan (2007) by Geoffrey T — 09 Jun 2010

Mongol is the early life story of Genghis Kahn. A story that I had no prior knowledge of at all. Historical Fiction being my favorite genre, I was very intrigued with the story from the start. The cinematography was just fantastic. The shots of the landscapes throughout the movie were wonderful. You can always tell when a filmaker goes all out with a film. Sergei Bodrov really gets deep into the story of how this legendary ruler came to be.

This movie really had it all. The landscapes were just one of the many parts that were impossible not to love. The family story was also very intriguing. The customs are all so very different than we are used to, it was interesting to see. Having to choose a bride when you are 9 years old was a good example. I couldn't imagine.

The actor that played the child role (9-11) did a fantastic job. A lot of child roles arn't talked about much because you can't really criticize a child actor. No problem here, he did great, and really owned the part right from the start. The main actor Tadanobu Asano (Temudgen/Genghis Kahn) also did a great job. Asano owned the screen, you couldn't help but cheer for him. And to top it off was the female lead of Borte played by Khulan Chuluun. "Behind every great man, there is a great women." Nothing more true than the wife behind Genghis Kahn. He chose his wife when he was 9 years old, and from then on they were soul mates. Chuluun was wonderful. A very strong woman that was full of courage and strength, mixed with beauty and grace.

Now on to the fighting. This was shot extremely well...granted there were no huge battle scenes (at least with major fighting), but the fighting was really well done. It didn't look fake, not too much blood, but also plenty of it at the same time. Some were fast paced, and some were slow motion. Just a great mix of sword play that seemed very realistic.

If you havent seen it yet, know that it is in subtitles. I think that it makes it all the more realistic and historicaly accurate. Subtitles dont bother as long as the film does not bore me, which was not the case here. You will be grabbed in from the first scene until final caption that says..."now the legend begins.".