From state-of-the-art 13th-century warfare to perfumed sex, The Fall of Otrar has it all; a hypnotic epic about one of world history’s crucial battles championed by Martin Scorsese and best experienced on the big screen.
Immerse yourself in the intrigues and turmoil preceding Genghis Khan’s systematic destruction of the lost East Asian civilization of Otrar. A cornerstone of the Kazakh New Wave movement of the 1990s, The Fall of Otrar is hallucinatory, visually stunning, and packed with eye-catching (and gouging) detail; traversing an endless variety of parched, epic landscapes and ornate palaces.
Evoking the dynamic pacing of Akira Kurosawa, and the sensuousness of Tarkovsky (with some deft alternation among colour, black-and-white, and sepia film stocks), Amirkulov follows the build-up to war through the eyes of Unjukhan (Dokhdurbek Kydyraliyev), an audacious Kipchak soldier who tries to convince Khwarazm’s ruler (Tungyshpai Zhamankulov) of Khan’s imminent invasion.
With a panoramic scope that covers the intimate details of palace intrigue as well as the merciless sweep of battlefield carnage, The Fall of Otrar is a masterful imagining of the seismic changes of history - and a terrifying, electrifying feast for the senses.
Restored by The Film Foundation’s World Cinema Project and Cineteca di Bologna at L’Immagine Ritrovata laboratory, in collaboration with Ardak Amirkulov. Funding provided by the Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation. The Fall of Otrar (1991) was restored in 4K from the original camera and sound negatives. Scanning was performed by ARDFILM in Almaty (Republic of Kazakhstan). Ardak Amirkulov supervised the scanning and approved the final grading. Special thanks to Daniel Bird. Restoration work was completed in 2024 by L’Immagine Ritrovata.
With an introduction by Timon Singh (Forbidden Worlds Film Festival Director and BFI FAN Art of Action Producer)
-
Special offers:
Booking for more than 10 events/screenings?
Buy a Cinema Rediscovered Festival Pass (£120 full / £100 concessions / £80 24 and under) and select your tickets for as many of the 80+ screenings and events during the festival as you want.
Booking for between 4 to 10 events/screenings?
Multi-Ticket Package Offer: get 20% off the regular ticket price when you book 4-10 Cinema Rediscovered screenings and/or events. The discount will automatically apply when you add the tickets to your basket.
Club Shed members get 20% off all individual Cinema Rediscovered tickets.