Mongol

[Amazon Link]
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[3.5
stars] [IMDb Link]

I hear you asking: are there hordes? Yes, indeed, there are hordes. You can't title a movie Mongol without including hordes. It would be like not having kangaroos in Australia.

There's also throat-singing, of course.

It's the story of Genghis Khan! It begins in his youth: as a nine-year-old named Temudjin, his dad takes him on a trip to a neighboring tribe to pick a bride. And it winds up (minor spoiler for historical illiterates) when he defeats his rivals to give birth to the Mongol Empire.

The movie portrays GK as kind of a big sentimental softie when it comes to his family and friends. Frankly, I doubt it. But this won over Mrs. Salad, who (I was surprised) really liked it. And there's plenty of horde-vs-horde blood-splattery for the guys. Fun for the whole family.

It was filmed mostly in Mongolia. It's in Mongolian, with English subtitles. (Although at least one commenter at IMDB scorns the language as being "pidgin" Mongolian, it's probably authentic enough for most.) The actors are also mostly Mongolian, except for the one playing the adult Temudjin (he's Japanese), and the one playing his blood-brother-turned-enemy, Jamukha (Chinese). In other words, authenticity-wise, this movie compares well with The Conqueror, which starred John Wayne as Genghis.

The actor playing Jamukha, by the way, is very, very good.


Last Modified 2024-02-01 5:15 AM EDT