Beshkempir
Encyclopedia
Beshkempir is a 1998
Kyrgyz language
film. Shot and produced in Kyrgyzstan
, it is representative of the first wave of independently produced cinema in the country after its independence from Soviet Union
. It was directed by Aktan Abdykalykov
, and stars the director's son Mirlan Abdykalykov in the lead role. This simple bildungsroman
went on to receive critical acclaim, and won numerous international awards including the Silver Leopard Prize at the 1998 Locarno International Film Festival
.
. However, approaching adolescence leads the boys to spy on a village woman's breasts, make clay models of the female form and pretend to make love and eye girls. Beshkempir is even shown as the message carrier between an older boy and his girlfriend.
Rivalry over a girl Aynura leads to Beshkempir's friend divulging the fact of his adoption to Beshkempir by calling Beshkempir a foundling
, who had been unaware of his roots till then. Even though his grandmother denies the story, Beshkempir is upset, and this leads to numerous scuffles with his friend. Hostility is also shown between Beshkempir's adoptive mother and his friend's mother on numerous occasions, culminating in the friend's mother coming to Beshkempir's house to complain about Beshkempir beating up his son.
Beshkempir's adoptive father beats Beshkempir over the incident, who runs away and joins a fisherman. Meanwhile, Beshkempir's grandmother dies and asks that Beshkempir be told the truth in her will. Beshkempir is located and brought home, and is reconciled with adoptive family and friends. The funeral ceremony shows Beshkempir suddenly growing up by giving the customary speech at the funeral where he pledges to repay his grandmother's debts (if any) and to forgo any outstanding debts to his grandmother. The film ends with Beshkempir courting Aynura and a brief shot of an engagement ceremony.
, treating universal issues of growing up in a rural landscape (see Pather Panchali
for a famous movie of similar form). The movie shows little or no Kyrgyzstan-specific footage, except for a brief glimpse of money at one point. However, it depicts several Kyrgyz customs - including the ceremony of placing a baby in a cradle (biseke salu), the funerary ceremony and the engagement ceremony. The ceremonies depict several ethnic Kyrgyz artifacts, like the tekemet rugs of the region, the kigiz felt carpets and the Kyrgyz cradle or besik.
The storytelling is simple and direct, and the plentiful visuals of nature and village life is complemented by soundtrack recordings of accentuated village sounds and the sounds of nature. The film is shot in black and white, occasionally interspersed with color sequences. The color sequences typically depict colorful focal themes like the girl Aynura, colorful Tekemet rugs, or a hoopoe
(a kind of bird). Some critics have placed the film in the Neorealist
school.
Most of the shooting took place on location in the village of Bar-Boulak in Kyrgyzstan.
1998 in film
-Events:* February 14 - Sharon Stone marries Phil Bronstein.* Former child star Gary Coleman is charged with assaulting a young female bus driver at a California shopping mall.-Top grossing films:...
Kyrgyz language
Kyrgyz language
Kyrgyz or Kirgiz, also Kirghiz, Kyrghiz, Qyrghiz is a Turkic language and, together with Russian, an official language of Kyrgyzstan...
film. Shot and produced in Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan , officially the Kyrgyz Republic is one of the world's six independent Turkic states . Located in Central Asia, landlocked and mountainous, Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the southwest and China to the east...
, it is representative of the first wave of independently produced cinema in the country after its independence from Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. It was directed by Aktan Abdykalykov
Aktan Abdykalykov
Aktan Abdykalykov is a screenwriter and director from Kyrgystan.-Filmography:*2010 - The Light Thief *2001 - Maimyl *1998 - Beshkempir...
, and stars the director's son Mirlan Abdykalykov in the lead role. This simple bildungsroman
Bildungsroman
In literary criticism, bildungsroman or coming-of-age story is a literary genre which focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood , and in which character change is thus extremely important...
went on to receive critical acclaim, and won numerous international awards including the Silver Leopard Prize at the 1998 Locarno International Film Festival
Locarno International Film Festival
The Film Festival Locarno is an international film festival held annually in the city of Locarno, Switzerland since 1946. After Cannes and Venice and together with Karlovy Vary, Locarno is the Film Festival with the longest history...
.
Plot
The movie starts with an adoption ceremony presided over by five old women (Beshkempir literally means "five grandmothers"), in a village in Kyrgyzstan. The movie then flashes forward a decade or so to show the coming of age of the adopted child - Beshkempir. He is shown indulging in childhood pranks and activities with friends in a rural setting, like stealing honey from beehives and going to watch screened Hindi moviesBollywood
Bollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...
. However, approaching adolescence leads the boys to spy on a village woman's breasts, make clay models of the female form and pretend to make love and eye girls. Beshkempir is even shown as the message carrier between an older boy and his girlfriend.
Rivalry over a girl Aynura leads to Beshkempir's friend divulging the fact of his adoption to Beshkempir by calling Beshkempir a foundling
Child abandonment
Child abandonment is the practice of relinquishing interests and claims over one's offspring with the intent of never again resuming or reasserting them. Causes include many social and cultural factors as well as mental illness. An abandoned child is called a foundling .-Causes:Poverty is often a...
, who had been unaware of his roots till then. Even though his grandmother denies the story, Beshkempir is upset, and this leads to numerous scuffles with his friend. Hostility is also shown between Beshkempir's adoptive mother and his friend's mother on numerous occasions, culminating in the friend's mother coming to Beshkempir's house to complain about Beshkempir beating up his son.
Beshkempir's adoptive father beats Beshkempir over the incident, who runs away and joins a fisherman. Meanwhile, Beshkempir's grandmother dies and asks that Beshkempir be told the truth in her will. Beshkempir is located and brought home, and is reconciled with adoptive family and friends. The funeral ceremony shows Beshkempir suddenly growing up by giving the customary speech at the funeral where he pledges to repay his grandmother's debts (if any) and to forgo any outstanding debts to his grandmother. The film ends with Beshkempir courting Aynura and a brief shot of an engagement ceremony.
Critical appeal
The film is a bildungsromanBildungsroman
In literary criticism, bildungsroman or coming-of-age story is a literary genre which focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood , and in which character change is thus extremely important...
, treating universal issues of growing up in a rural landscape (see Pather Panchali
Pather Panchali
Pather Panchali is a 1955 Bengali drama film written and directed by Satyajit Ray and produced by the Government of the Indian state of West Bengal. Based on Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay's 1929 Bengali novel of the same name, the film was the directorial debut of Ray...
for a famous movie of similar form). The movie shows little or no Kyrgyzstan-specific footage, except for a brief glimpse of money at one point. However, it depicts several Kyrgyz customs - including the ceremony of placing a baby in a cradle (biseke salu), the funerary ceremony and the engagement ceremony. The ceremonies depict several ethnic Kyrgyz artifacts, like the tekemet rugs of the region, the kigiz felt carpets and the Kyrgyz cradle or besik.
The storytelling is simple and direct, and the plentiful visuals of nature and village life is complemented by soundtrack recordings of accentuated village sounds and the sounds of nature. The film is shot in black and white, occasionally interspersed with color sequences. The color sequences typically depict colorful focal themes like the girl Aynura, colorful Tekemet rugs, or a hoopoe
Hoopoe
The Hoopoe is a colourful bird that is found across Afro-Eurasia, notable for its distinctive 'crown' of feathers. It is the only extant species in the family Upupidae. One insular species, the Giant Hoopoe of Saint Helena, is extinct, and the Madagascar subspecies of the Hoopoe is sometimes...
(a kind of bird). Some critics have placed the film in the Neorealist
Neorealism (art)
In art, neorealism was established by the ex-Camden Town Group painters Charles Ginner and Harold Gilman at the beginning of World War I. They set out to explore the spirit of their age through the shapes and colours of daily life...
school.
Most of the shooting took place on location in the village of Bar-Boulak in Kyrgyzstan.
Awards
The movie won several awards in international film festivals, including:- The Silver Leopard Prize at the Locarno International Film FestivalLocarno International Film FestivalThe Film Festival Locarno is an international film festival held annually in the city of Locarno, Switzerland since 1946. After Cannes and Venice and together with Karlovy Vary, Locarno is the Film Festival with the longest history...
in SwitzerlandSwitzerlandSwitzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, 1998 - The Jury Award for Artistic Contribution at the Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Films in ArgentinaArgentinaArgentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, 1999 - The Silver Film Can Award and the FIPRESSI Award at the Singapore International Film FestivalSingapore International Film FestivalThe Singapore International Film Festival was launched in 1987. The festival is an annual film event, held around April/May each year, and screens about 300 films from over 45 countries...
, 1999
External links
- Review at the NY Times
- Review at a website for Russian film studies kinokultura.com
- Screenplay based on the French subtitling