Genghis Khan (1965)

I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much

Just perfect...

Great Film overall

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

This film about the great Tatar * conqueror Genghis Khan who stated as the ordinary boy called Temujin is the best film about Genghis Khan so far before the the debut of the Kazakh film Mongol in 2007. The reason for this is because its production and directing as a costume drama is good that makes it enjoyable though as a notable drama it fails to be an epic as the story line is wooden that spoils the overall film. The famous John Wayne disaster "The Conqueror" can compensate for this as the story line and its representation of the characters is much closer and darker to the rise of the real Genghis Khan although the advantage this film has over the central theme of The Conqueror is that it highlights Genghis Khans conquests of China and Central Asia. Despite the anecdotal and soap based story line the music, costumes, cultural representations and its filming locations in the beautiful former Yugoslavia which was a good choice makes this film a good costume drama on an interesting man. The only way this film could of been made as an historical epic in the era of the zenith of their productions is that the theme central to it should of been about the Khans rise as represented in the Conqueror - which should of disappeared in to the abyss before moving to his conquests and narration of his legacy which gave the film depth. * Many reviewers have said of the cast who play in this film as not being Asian enough. This is true for the Chinese who are clichéd and are not correctly represented. However the characters playing "Mongols" such as Omar Sharif and Francois Dorleac were for the time well cast and well played and they can be accepted in their roles by being presented as Turkic (Tartar) as the Mongols were known at their height.

Like another reviewer said, not quite as bad as I thought it was going to be. With this near all-Caucasian star line-up I suppose it couldn't be. Presumably having a summer holiday. Half the time I mistook Kenneth Cope for Oliver Reed. It seems to have been made as a sort of joke, along the lines of Gilbert and Sullivan's Mikado. Not exactly Oriental. Was it racist ? Genghis Khan, the most tyrannical and genocidal maniac before Stalin and Hitler, comes across as the Lord High Executioner, a civilized, courteous and charming gentleman to the bitter end. Difficult to know why Omar kept sparing his deadly enemy. Needed him for the final show-down, I guess. Slightly farcical. Morley and Mason get despatched gruesomely but tastefully. Wasn't too sure of what they'd been doing wrong. Unpoetic justice. They seemed so harmless, even if Morley carried his aestheticism to inordinate lengths. Dandy fingernails. All the deaths were very discreetly handled, even if there were rather a lot of them. Off-stage. At some moments it seemed a bit like a Wild Eastern, at others like the Sound of Mongol Music. I haven't seen Lord of the Rings, but I imagine Michael Hordern would be dead right for it. Fixedly aimed at the under-14 market, I can't help wishing myself back in those far- off days. I would really have enjoyed it then.

As an user has pointed out ,this is the last of the spectaculars of the late fifties/early sixties which began with De Mille's "Ten Commandments" and included such works as "Ben Hur" ,"Spartacus " (which was more Kirk Douglas' work than Kubrik's ),the highly underrated "Cleopatra"(when will we see the uncut version?),Mann 's "El Cid" and "Fall of the Roman Empire" .This is the last hurrah,but it's a bad film.James Mason and Robert Morley do not seem to take their roles seriously (as Chinese characters!!)and their playing is deliciously tongue-in-cheek.But all the others seem to believe in this far-fetched tale ,very dubious historically ,with Egyptian Omar Sharif as the lead who abducts pretty princess (French Françoise Dorléac) who is raped by Irish Villain (evennastier than Ben Hur's Messala) Boyd.There's also American Wallach who offers him his two daughters.Both Sharif and Boyd seem to enjoy bondage (collar ,cage,etc).When he speaks to common women ,Genghis is feminist (it's up to them to choose) ,but when he is with his wife ,he's a more credible macho.Incidentally,Sharif,Mason and Dorléac's sister (Catherine Deneuve) would team up three years later in Terence Young's "Mayerling".This time,Mason was Sharif's father .If you want to see a good Sharif movie,do choose "Dr Zhivago" instead.

Historical accuracy is not very likely in an epic like this, but that's not the point, especially after so many years have passed since it was made. Considering 'Genghis Khan' now, it stands out as a dandy museum piece, not only in the 'they don't make 'em like this any more' category, but because it's such a full-blown try at making a splash in the epic film sweepstakes of the 1960s.Yeah, it's a tinker-toy epic, but great fun, despite aiming at serious drama. Only 'Marco the Magnificent' outdoes it for 'Mutinational Production Prize' of its era.Interestingly, it's a 'gap-filler' epic. That is, in the years when every ancient or legendary subject/culture seemed to be tackled by producers, hoping to strike 'Ben-Hur' gold, filmmakers shopped around history, looking for unique subjects to make an impression. Sooner or later the great Khan's number was going to come up. 'The Conqueror' with John Wayne seems more like a western (duh!), while 'Genghis' actually has a central Asian feel to it. Like its mate, 'The Long Ships', this is a Yugoslavian-filmed venture, a mini attempt to emulate Sam Bronston's epic production efforts over in Spain.After Bronston's great empire unfortunately folded, other attempts to take up the epic gauntlet were made. This is one of the most sincere. A great cast, pretty respectable art direction, a sense of epic sweep, and a predictable but often witty script, they're all here. I'm sure the distinguished cast did it for the money, but at least they probably had a good time doing it. At its best it's a decent try at being epic. At its worst, it's a curiosity, but a pretty amusing one.Highlights: - Dusan Radic's fantastic score. He achieves a Rosza-like standard, I think.Michael Hordern yelling 'TEMM-U-JEEN!!!' endlessly.Omar Sharif's yoke. Enthusiasts can see who wears his longer: Omar or John Wayne.James Mason's Mandarin parody. Politically correct it ain't.Bob Morley steals the show (as usual), as the effete emperor. The only character in cinema history who is killed just by WATCHING fireworks. Best line, as he hands a featherweight fan to a servant: 'Take it, it grows heavy'.Orson Welles WASN'T in this one, but should have been.Francoise Dorleac is of course very Euro, but not bad to look at.Any picture with Geoffrey Unsworth behind the camera is going to have some stuff going for it. Seeing it in full Panavision on the big screen would certainly give this picture more respectability.I await its' much-deserved DVD appearance.