The Fall of Otrar
The Fall of Otrar
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2h 37m
Directed by Ardak Amirkulov • 1991 • Kazakhstan
Starring Dokhdurbek Kydyraliyev, Tungyshbai Dzhamankulov, Bolot Beyshenaliyev
Kazakh New Wave iconoclast Ardak Amirkulov’s hypnotic thirteenth-century epic is a feverish vision of one of history’s most decisive battles—Genghis Khan’s siege of the now-lost city of Otrar—engraved in images of stunning, hallucinatory power. When his warnings about an imminent invasion are taken for insolence, a former Mongol scout (Dokhdurbek Kydyraliyev) must escape imprisonment to stop an escalating diplomatic crisis and avert a clash of civilizations. With a panoramic scope that encompasses intimate palace intrigue and the merciless sweep of battlefield carnage, THE FALL OF OTRAR is a monumental imagining of seismic historical upheaval—and a terrifying, electrifying feast for the senses.
Up Next in The Fall of Otrar
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Martin Scorsese on THE FALL OF OTRAR
This short program, produced by the Criterion Collection in 2025, features Martin Scorsese, founder of The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project.
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The Making of THE FALL OF OTRAR
This program, produced by the Criterion Collection in 2025, features interviews with director Ardak Amirkulov; actor Tungyshbai Dzhamankulov, who plays the character of Kairkhan; art director Umirzak Shmanov; and film journalist Gulnara Abikeyeva.
