Movies

While the plot contained some dubious twists and had rather strange and slow pacing, the overall effect of this movie is stellar. The cinematography rivals, while being similar to, movies such as "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". The score was amazing. The acting was, to my English speaking eyes and ears, convincing. The few combat scenes were filmed and choreographed to great effect. I am not sure how historically accurate this movie is, but it works as an enchanting piece of cinema. Highly recommended to anyone who likes art films and historical epics. Seriously, the locations make me want to take a vacation to the steppes immediately.

Disappointing.I love biopics, so was very keen to see this, especially as I don't know much about the life of Genghis Khan. Unfortunately, I was very disappointed. A lot of the bigger picture detail is left out. The script leaves huge gaps in the history, gaps which which would have been more interesting that the detail that was provided. Because of these gaps you don't get a feel for how Genghis Khan achieved his power, and the whole thing becomes disjointed and confusing.Acting felt very wooden, too.A movie that leaves you with more questions than answers.

I saw this last week at the Toronto film festival and loved it. Many of the people in my group did not want to see it because they were not interested in the subject matter and ended up loving the film. It seemed to be the overall favorite of the group (we saw 12 films in Toronto). There is a fair amount of blood so if one is bothered by violence, you may not enjoy it. In some ways it reminded me of Braveheart because you learned about the history, but there was also beautiful cinematography, landscapes, and very well done battle scenes. This film could possibly be in the running for the best foreign film Oscar.