Mongol

R

Released Jun 6, 2008

2 hr. 6 min.

History

Drama

Adventure

War

Biography

List

87%

105 Reviews

Tomatometer

76%

10,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

This fact-based epic traces the early and tumultuous years of legendary warrior Genghis Khan, then known as Temudgin (Tadanobu Asano). Despite the killing of his father, the betrayal of his friend, and even being forced to serve as a slave, Temudgin still creates his own path for future greatness. He hones his battle skills and marries Borte (Khulan Chuluun), whose love and reliability are crucial, often overlooked elements to his historic success as a conqueror.

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Critics Consensus

The sweeping Mongol mixes romance, family drama, and enough flesh-ripping battle scenes to make sense of Ghenghis Khan's legendary stature.

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Sergey B

Tadanobu Asano (who does a great job in Shogun 2024) as Temudgin is a visual treat, but that's it - no proper character development, no story development, the film overall feels cheap and hastily made.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

03/24/24

Full Review

home o

this is how you tell a story.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/25/24

Full Review

dave s

Director Sergei Bodrov has proven that he has an eye for capturing rugged, sweeping vistas on film (Prisoner of the Mountains, for example), but nothing previously could have prepared audiences for the visual wonders of Mongol, an epic that tells the story of Genghis Khan as a child and young adult. Shot in both Kazakhstan and the wind-swept steppes of Mongolia, the first half of the film follows his life from the age of nine as the foundations are set for him to fulfil his destiny as a ruler. The second half of the movie is filled with Kurosawa-like battle scenes, all epic in nature and filled with clashing steel and dripping blood. The acting is subdued but effective, the music score is wonderful, and the entire film is a tribute to the intoxicating allure of both love and power.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A tender, realistic, and unabashedly favorable depiction of one of history's most vicious mass murderers.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/30/23

Full Review

david l

While Mongol is surface level thematically speaking and it is limited in its focus, the historical figures that it depicts are well realized and the movie is undeniably an epic film spectacle due to its grandiose score, arresting visuals and strong direction as well as editing. It's an engaging, powerful film, but one that should have been more ambitious plotwise.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

alex h

I want to start off by saying that I understand why many people like this movie, but for me, it was quite a disappointment. I am a huge fan of history and I believe that Bodrov portrayed everything right, but if the climax and the suspense is compared to his other films, this one doesn't feel anything like any of them. It is very boring at some point because of no dubbing available and at points like that it is very hard to concentrate. The setting of the film does not change at all, I understand that this is how Mongolia looked, but the "sandy" color pattern barely changes throughout the entire film. The role of the film however was to make the story realistic, and it did, Timujin is portrayed perfectly and the morale of the movie can be clearly seen -- that Mongolians were born for war, as well as it tells basically not just the history of Timujin, but of Mongolian Empire itself at some point. The acting is great, but the visuals, camera angles and costumes leave off a lot of "Russian" feeling, it could be just me, but they didn't seem like actual Mongolian armor to me. Overall the movie is pretty forgettable and can be considered just another history drama with a little to no climax at all and literally no emotions throughout the whole movie whatsoever, a 5/10, wanted to see it for very long and my wait was not what I expected.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

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Sergey Bodrov

Director

Tadanobu Asano

Temudgin

Honglei Sun

Jamukha

Khulan Chuluun

Borte

Amadu Mamadakov

Targutai

Bayertsetseg Erdenebat

Young Börte

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Deborah Ross

The Spectator

Stunning to look at, but as an engaging, illuminating, convincing piece of cinema? No, not really.

Jan 27, 2018

Full Review

Ben Kenigsberg

Time Out

Rated: 3/5

Nov 18, 2011

Full Review

Joshua Rothkopf

Time Out

Rated: 2/5

Nov 17, 2011

Full Review

Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

Mongol redeems sweeping epics filled with armies engaging in bloody swordplay, volleys of arrows, and slow-motion combat, even while embracing all their formulaic elements, by simply getting it right.

Rated: 3.5/4

Mar 9, 2024

Full Review

Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

Gorgeous imagery, visceral battles, and powerful storytelling.

Rated: 8/10

Nov 28, 2020

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Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

Surprisingly accurate historically, beautifully designed, and well-acted.

Rated: 3.5/4.0

Sep 17, 2020

Full Review

Read all reviews

Synopsis

This fact-based epic traces the early and tumultuous years of legendary warrior Genghis Khan, then known as Temudgin (Tadanobu Asano). Despite the killing of his father, the betrayal of his friend, and even being forced to serve as a slave, Temudgin still creates his own path for future greatness. He hones his battle skills and marries Borte (Khulan Chuluun), whose love and reliability are crucial, often overlooked elements to his historic success as a conqueror.

Director: Sergey Bodrov
Screenwriter: Sergey Bodrov, Arif Aliyev
Distributor: Picturehouse
Production Co: Kinokompaniya CTB
Rating: R (Sequences of Bloody Warfare)
Genre: History, Drama, Adventure, War, Biography
Original Language: Chinese
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 6, 2008, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 16, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA): $5.7M

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