The best films from Kazakhstan to stream to Borat

Sacha Baron Cohen’s outrageous 2006 comedy, Borat, about a fictional Kazakh reporter traveling across the United States, brought the Central Asian nation to the attention of most Americans for the first time. At the time, the Kazakh government had an understandable reaction to the comedian’s crude and stereotypical portrayal of the former Soviet republic. Now, 16 years later, with the release of the sequel “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”, the country is back in the foreground; This time, however, they are taking the attention to improve their tourist prospects. For his part, Baron Cohen recently said he selected Kazakhstan as Borat’s nationality “because it was a place almost no one in the US knew about, which enabled us to create a wild, comedic, fake world.”

While American audiences are certainly familiar with Kazakhstan by now, its actual culture and history remain a mystery to most. Although Kazakh artists have been making films since the 1930s, most of that effort has been Soviet propaganda until the past 30 years. Since gaining independence from the USSR in 1991, the country has managed to build a small but significant film industry.

Much of Kazakh cinema is focused on epic stories that honor their ancient past or complex relationship with the Soviet Union and, later, Russia. Although a large part of these productions have been exported and have been successful at international festivals, unfortunately many are still not shown in the USA

Currently none of Emir Baigazin’s films (“Harmony Lessons”, “The Wounded Angel”) are legally available in the US. Sergey Dvortsevoy’s “Ayka”, which was included in the Oscar shortlist for the best foreign language film in 2018, remains without US distribution. The same goes for many older titles like “The Fall of Otrar,” which were notable when first released but are now out of print and no longer available on streaming platforms.

With this in mind, there is much to discover among the Kazakh roles currently available in the United States. Here are the best.

“Mongol: The Rise of Genghis Khan” (2007)

Directed by Sergei Bodrov, this historical epic tells the early life of the ruthless leader who was to rule the massive Mongol Empire in China and Central Asia in the 13th century. The character introduces the impressive cinematic performance, breathtaking in its large scope and first-class execution when he was a warrior named Temudgin (Tadanobu Asano), including passages on his childhood, and following his path to becoming the dreaded Genghis Khan through tragedy, brutal battles, and sheer determination. The production was not only a financial success, but also earned Kazakhstan its first Oscar nomination for best foreign language film.

Rent or buy from Amazon Prime

“My Bala: Warriors of the Steppe” (2011)

Funded by the Kazakh government to commemorate the young country’s 20th anniversary of independence from the Soviet Union, this grand romance contains a large-scale retelling of a key event in 18th century history and offers familiar tropes from a specific cultural perspective which is unknown to most in the west. Akan Satayev’s saga is a big box-office hit at home and revolves around the young hero Sartay (Asylkhan Tolypov), a skilled archer, and the Battle of Anyrakay, in which valiant Kazakh freedom fighters defeated the Dzhungars, a group of Mongol invaders. This is by no means a subtle proposition, but it’s a gripping and well-crafted war epic nonetheless.

Hire purchase on iTunes

“The way to the mother” (2016)

Satayev, one of Kazakhstan’s most prolific filmmakers, explores a recent past, beginning this monumental story in the 1930s and tracing it to the present. As with most of the director’s government-sponsored films over the past decade, it is a deliberately patriotic drama, but one that becomes poignant, providing insight into the country’s hardships and geopolitical changes in the 20th century under Soviet control. Our fictional guide into such a great story is Ilyas (Adil Akhmetov), ​​a young man separated from his mother who has to live through hell to return home.

Buy it on Blu-ray / DVD at the Lorber cinema

“Songs from the South Seas” (2008)

Two couples, a Kazakh and a Russian, get into a conflict fueled by marital distrust and venomous masculinity over the paternity of a child in this measured ensemble drama from director Marat Sarulu. The four live in the great steppe of Kazakhstan and have a close relationship. When Maria (Irina Angejkina), the Russian woman, gives birth to a baby who is darker in complexion than she and her husband, doubts arise. Strong, naturalistic feats help Sarulu bridge the racial and cultural divide between these two groups of people who exist in close proximity to an inseparable common history.

Stream on Amazon Prime

Tulpan (2008)

Sergey Dvortsevoy’s charming and impressive portrait of a young man striving to meet the manhood standards of his people was awarded the Un Certain Regard Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. Anchored in Askhat Kuchencherekov’s role as Asa, the lovable protagonist who has returned to the steppes after serving in the Russian Navy to settle down and get married, the film impresses with beautiful cinematography that degrades the beauty of the sparse landscapes while his moving narrative the clash of tradition and modernity. If you only see one movie from this list, make it this one.

Stream on Tubi

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