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The story recounts the early life of Genghis Khan who was a slave before going on to conquer half the world including Russia in 1206.
Tadanobu Asano: Temudjin
''Be strong... and ask our Lord of the blue sky, great Tengri... to help you.''
The film and story of Mongol gives us the early beginnings of Khan's life, his name Temudjin and his humble origins and beginnings. It depicts the struggles and harsh times he experiences even at a young age of nine.
Mongol is an offering from Russian film-maker Sergei Bodrov known for his Academy Award nominated work Prisoners of the Mountains, nominated for the Best Foreign Film category. That perhaps is the only similarity between these two films of his. Mongol was nominated in the same category in 2007.
Being the first of three instalments based on and around the life of Temudjin (1162 - 1227), this first feature, Mongol, is the build up from his unfortunate childhood and youth to the first phase of his adult life as leader of the Mongol Empire. With its, sadly, limited cinema release, this tiny budgeted film, an estimated £14,000,000($20,000,000) has been beautifully shot, with its stunning panoramic views of the barren Asian landscapes to its costumes and tone that sets the films pace and direction. While, possibly, not the most historically correct of stories, what we do see here is an interesting overview of the plight of a young Genghis Khan and his survival as a young son, prisoner, slave, husband, father and warrior.
The major part of the story is a telling of his early childhood and his growing up by Temudjin himself, now in captivity. Being a story of his growing up, most of the emphasis lies in lessons, learning the ways of life. To fear, to be brave, to defy, to make friends, and so on and so forth. The film shows us Temudjin's slow transformation from being the oppressed son of a Khan, awaiting death once he is found by his foes who want the title of Khan, to his becoming the great Khan himself.
The film's lead Tadanobu Asano, playing the role of Temudjin is considerably accurate in all regards. But the one deserving more credit is Sun Honglei, whom I've seen in Seven Swords I believe, who plays Jamukha, Temudjin's blood-brother who later becomes his enemy. Sun Honglei is a humourous, emotional wrought character. He commands attention with his screen presence, his role is a lesson in how to keep the viewer mesmerised. Apart from some solid acting, Mongol has a brilliant background score, often haunting and spellbinding and some top notch cinematography every moment. The fight sequences are exceptionally well-made, and some of the landscape shots are beautiful. The camera tracking in the war sequences toward the end of the film deserve your attention and repeat viewings.
Jamukha: You're letting an enemy go free.
Temudjin: I'm letting a brother go free.
At it's heart Mongol is as historical inaccurate as any other Hollywood flick and in addition it lacks consistency: in this movie things just happen without any explanation. An example: the opening scene shows us Temudjin as prisoner in a Chinese town. He looks to be in his late thirties. Wait a moment, I thought, wasn't he by then khan of all Mongols? Yes, but not according to the movie. Another example: at the end of the movie his wife liberates Temudjin from the Chinese by bribing the guards and posing as a rich woman. But when she travels to the city, she has no money and she pays a merchant for the trip with sex. The merchant then disappears. Did she kill him and take his money? We are not told. More: Temudjin travels back and he is able to raise a big army out of the blue in no time. How? Where? What? Who? And more: Temudjin becomes the blood brother of Jamukha, one sons of the most powerful of khans. Why? It just happens.
It can be forgiven for it's faults in accuracy and moments considering the beautiful scenery, costumes and characters on display. Not to mention battles and fights that have a gritty realism residing at the edged of it's many swords.
Mongol simply put, has stunning cinematography, a sumptuous score by Tuomas Kantelinen, and battle scenes that are thrilling though not stomach turning. While there are the expected swinging swords and pools of blood, the killing is mostly impressionistic and the visuals never overwhelm us. Mongol has been called hagiography, but it is grand storytelling with a humanistic bent in which personal relationships overwhelm bloody conflict. Asano's craft is such that we identify with the Mongol leader who, after being forced into slavery, emerges as a unifying and compelling figure who earns our respect. Though the film does not strive for innovation, when Temudgin calls on the Mongol God Tegri for assistance and receives it, we know that we are in an otherworldly place. Bordering on 300's artistic range of originality and artistic license, we are given sequences where Mongols are scared to fight in a battle due to lightening and storms. Suggesting perhaps a factor of luck was perhaps in Temudgin's favour, yet there has plenty of trials to suggest he is a powerful and resourceful leader and fighter. So Mongol gives us a range of mixed messages, ones of superstition yet strategy, love yet tradition, and it also gives us a beginning to a very complex character and formidable leader of the past.
''Mongols need laws.
I will make them obey...
...even if I have to kill half of them.
Our laws will be simple.
Don't kill women or children.
Don't forget your debts.
Fight enemies to the end.
And never betray your khan.''
8/10
