Genghis Khan
To The Ends of Earth and Sea (Blue Wolf)
Director: Shinichiro Sawai
Cast: Takashi Sorimachi, Matsukata Hiroki, Matsuyama Kenichi, Naoki Hosaka
The life of Genghis Khan comes to the big screen like never before in the epic biopic Genghis Khan - To the Ends of the Earth and Sea (a.k.a. The Blue Wolf: To the Ends of the Earth and Sea). Helmed by Sawai Shinichiro, the award-winning director of Kadokawa classics Tragedy of W and Early Spring Story, Genghis Khan is a grand production in every sense of the word.
Shot entirely on location in the vast grasslands of Mongolia, this unprecedented co-production, made in commemoration of the 800th anniversary of the founding of Mongolia, employed a whopping 30 million yen budget and thousands of extras to stunningly recreate the spectacular battles and military feats of Genghis Khan.
Five thousand real-life Mongolian Army soldiers appeared as extras for an epic battle scene, and 27,000 people were mobilized to shoot the enthronement ceremony.
Sorimachi Takashi, who also starred in Kadokawa's 2005 blockbuster Yamato, plays with furious gusto the young warrior Temujin who would become the greatest khan Mongolia and the world has ever known, leaving behind him a legacy that would long outlast his empire. Adapted from a Morimura Seiichi novel, the film takes historical liberties but stays true in spirit in its depiction of the complicated figure that is Genghis Khan.
Genghis Khan details both the khan's brave military exploits, his ruthless political machinations, and the personal episodes that shape his life - his friendship and eventual rivalry with Jamuqa (Hirayama Yusuke, Limit of Love: Uzimaru), his courtship of tribal princess Borte (Kikukawa Rei, Install), his obsession with origin and lineage.
One of the biggest titles of 2007, Genghis Khan is a larger-than-life film befitting a larger-than-life historical figure.
2007 Color Widescreen 136 min.
Japanese With English subtitles.
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