Kurmanjan Datka

Seen at Philharmonia Hall Cinema in Osh, Kyrgyzstan

Cecil says: We chose this film because we liked the poster and it was the only film showing in Osh that afternoon that didn’t look like an action film, a kids’ comedy or a melodrama. We definitely got lucky because this was a classic costume drama which actually helped us enjoy - and understand – Kyrgyzstan over the following days.

It’s the first time I have been moved to tears by a film where I understood nothing of the dialogue (which was all in Russian or Kygyz without subtitles). That’s how powerful this film was.

Basically this is the story of Kyrgyzstan’s national heroine Kurmanjan Datka, who lived for almost 100 years from 1816 until early in the 20^th century. We’d never heard of her, of course, though once we’d seen the film, we noticed that Osh’s main street is named after her, and in the middle of town there is a wonderful three storey high yurt commemorating hers and her husband’s lives, modelled presumably on the kind of place they used to live in.

This is a wonderfully visual film, both for the scenery shown (although we learnt later that most of it was filmed in the lusher, greener north of the country, though the action is set in the dusty, barren south and in the more desert areas of Uzbekistan) and for the costumes.

It’s an epic film along the lines of Ben Hur or Lawrence of Arabia and you don’t need any knowledge of Kyrgyz history to appreciate the tale of feisty young girl who catches the eye of local landlord, defies custom by refusing to marry the ugly older man her father finds for her, and then has to battle to survive after her husband is killed in some sort of conspiracy story.

As she grows older she becomes something of a stateswoman, negotiating with the Russians who have moved into the region, and dealing with her own issues of grief and loss as her various sons are convicted of crimes and killed by the Russian authorities.

This is an extraordinary film. We felt privileged to be seeing it with an audience of locals, some of whom were also in tears and others of whom applauded at the end. Apparently, it has been nominated as the Kyrgyz entry for the Oscars foreign language film category this year, and it would certainly get my vote.

A fantastic film I’d gladly see again, with or without subtitles. Best film I’ve seen in 2014. Oh, and I can’t wait for the director to follow-up with parts 2 and 3, as apparently he plans once he has the funding…

*****

Bea says:  Cecil and I are of one mind on this one – I love historical epics anyway, and this one was just magnificent.  Even if I hadn’t been able to follow the plot, I wouldn’t have minded as the beautiful scenery and rich, colourful costumes alone would have kept me spell bound.  Probably most similar – in recent years – to Braveheart, this is a story that it seems is vitally important for the now independent Kyrgyz people to be able to tell, and it was wonderful to see it in a lovely old theatre in Osh, where much of the action takes place.  Cecil and I, although we couldn’t understand much else, were also thrilled when the action moved to Kokand and Bukhara, both of which we had recently visited.  It really did help us understand the countries we were visiting.

The film was made on a relative shoestring (1.5 million dollars), and it is impressive to see how much could be done with that – although I read an interview with the director that said he did struggle badly with the low budget.

I also enjoyed watching a historical epic that had at its centre the story of a woman and that did touch on some of the difficulties experienced by women generally, both now and historically (the near-stoning that takes place at the start of the film, arranged/forced marriage, and the position of women in society).

A definite must-see;  I want to see it again with English subtitles, so will be on the lookout and hoping for a win at the Oscars so it gets a wider audience!

****1/2