Timur Bekmambetov Movies
Commonly regarded as one of the most commercially successful directors of early 21th century Russia, Timur Bekmambetov traveled the path of many a feature helmer by beginning his career in the advertising arena and guiding a series of popular television advertisements through to fruition. Bekmambetov made his debut with the little-seen-abroad Russian picture Peshavarsky Vals (1994), but his science fiction franchise that began in 2004 with Night Watch and continued two years later with a sequel, Day Watch (2006), is what put him over the top and made him an international sensation. These sagas -- complex period thrillers with byzantine narratives about a showdown between the forces of light and the forces of darkness -- became instantaneous cult hits and the most lucrative releases in Russia for years; they also prompted Hollywood to summon Bekmambetov, and the trades reported in 2006 that Rogue Pictures gave him a first-look deal to develop English-language outings for its genre division. Meanwhile, Bekmambetov continued his Russian slate and in fact realized his English-language debut with the Spyglass-Universal release Wanted (2008). This apocalyptic adrenaline rush plays out the saga of a spineless hypochondriac (James McAvoy) drawn inexorably into a society of secret assassins. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide- 1994
This intense and graphic Russian war drama contains a fervent anti-war message as it realistically reenacts a blood-filled event from the Afghanistan war. It is based on actual events chronicled by Andrei Sakharov, a Russian dissident. The film is set within a military base in the Peshavar region of Pakistan. A British journalist, Charlie Palmer, and a French medic, Dubois, came to the base to document the sub-human living conditions of the P.O.W's there. While there, the Russian prisoners rise up and overtake the base. Palmer and Dubois are taken hostage and end up bearing witness to an astonishing blood bath as the abused P.O.W.s begin to slaughter their captors and anyone who resembles them. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barry Kushner, Viktor Verzbitsky, (more)
Gladiator undergoes a gender reassignment in this period action-drama. In ancient Rome, the decadent appetite of corrupt Governor Timarchus (Victor Verzbitsky) is no longer satisfied by the site of men battling to the death. Jessemina (Karen McDougal) is a slave who must obey the whims of her Roman overlords and Bodicia (Lisa Dergan) is a Druid who was abducted by Roman troops after her family was slaughtered. As Jessemina and Bodicia are forced to serve their Roman masters, they become friends, but they are made bitter rivals when Timarchus decides to add a new wrinkle to the tournaments and decrees that women will forced to fight for their lives -- and Jessemina and Bodicia are pitted against one another. The Arena (also screened as Gladiatrix) is a remake of Steve Carver's 1973 exploitation cult item of the same name, which starred Pam Grier and Margaret Markov as the battling Amazons; incidentally, this version's female leads, Karen McDougal and Lisa Dergan, were both "Playmate of the Month" models for Playboy Magazine in the late '90s. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Karen McDougal, Lisa Dergan, (more)
Two bands of warriors, one good and one evil, battle to keep the peace in Moscow in this cat's cradle thriller from Russia. In 1342, the Warriors of Light (led by Gesser, Lord of Light) and the Warriors of Darkness (led by Zavulon, General of Darkness) declare a truce under which each side will form a law enforcement team to monitor the other side's activities. The Warriors of Light, who enforce the powers of good, patrol the Night Watch, while the Warriors of Darkness, who openly embrace evil, staff the Day Watch. Each watch group also contains "Others," mortals with supernatural powers from both sides that include vampires, shapeshifters, witches, and the like. Prophecy suggests that one day, a Great One will surface and permanently extinguish the threat of an apocalyptic war between the two sides by upsetting the balance, lending greater power to either good or evil (depending on his or her choice) and thus determining the future of mankind forever.
In 1992, Night Watch member and Warrior of Light Anton Gordesky (Konstantin Khabensky) discovers he's an "other" amid a sting on a witch. Cut to twelve years later. In 2004, Anton still works the Night Watch, but now he's a vampiric warrior who drinks blood. One night, while on patrol, he rescues a young boy named Egor (Dima Martinov) from a handful of Dark Warriors, but in the process, he encounters Svetlana (Maria Poroshina), a woman who acts as a "funnel" -- a conduit for the powers of evil. Anton reflects on the prophecy regarding "The Great One," and begins to suspect that Svetlana and Egor may be harbingers of this fateful event. As the first installment in a Russian trilogy, Night Watch (aka Nochnoj Dozor) was a massive box-office success in its native Russia, and is followed by the second installment, Day Watch; it was released in the U.S. with a heavy prologue and epilogue, and animated subtitles that alternately scuttle across the screen, dissolve, shudder, and explode.
20th Century Fox not only purchased United States distribution rights for the film, but also announced plans for a Westernized remake. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Konstantin Khabensky, Vladimir Menshov, (more)
The apocalyptic sci-fi thriller Day Watch (aka Dvevnoy Dozor, 2006) constitutes the second installment in a planned supernatural trilogy by Russian director Timur Bekmambetov. As preceded by 2004's blockbuster Night Watch and followed by Twilight Watch, this sophomore film picks up on the byzantine tale of a world where, centuries ago, the powers of light (representing goodness) and the powers of darkness (representing evil) called a truce. Each side set up a law-enforcement team to guard and monitor the other's activities -- the powers of darkness established and controlled the Day Watch, while the powers of light established and controlled the Night Watch. Day Watch opens in the 14th century, when Tamerlane, a Mongol warrior, acquires an implement called "The Chalk of Destiny," that can be used to guide the course of history. Eons later (in the present day), the Day Watch and the Night Watch are ongoing. Two Warriors of Light, Anton Gorodetsky (Konstantin Khabensky) and his protégé/partner-in-training, Svetlana (Maria Poroshina), quietly develop feelings for one another as they patrol the Night Watch together. As the story progresses, the pair must respond to a distress call from an octogenarian victim of a vampiric attack -- an attack committed (as it turns out) by Anton's 12-year-old son, Yegor (Dima Martynov) -- now a Warrior of Darkness. Anton must suddenly wrestle with two conflicting desires -- the need to protect his offspring by destroying incriminating evidence, and his own desire to remain loyal to the Night Watch. Several additional subplots then unfold concurrently, including that of Yegor learning to practice evil from his mentor, Zavulon (Viktor Verzhbitsky), that of Anton "body swapping" with associate Olga (Galina Tyunina), and that of the relationship between a vampiric child, Kostya (Aleksei Chadov), and his dad (Valery Zolotukhin), who works as a butcher. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Konstantin Khabensky, Maria Poroshina, (more)
Night Watch director Timur Bekmambetov helms his first English-language feature film with this big-screen adaptation of Mark Millar's action-packed graphic novel. Wesley Gibson (James McAvoy) is a cube-dwelling hypochondriac whose uneventful life has become a mundane blur of terminal boredom. Repeatedly humiliated by his boss and constantly cuckolded by his cheating girlfriend, weakling Wes seems to be living right down to everyone's expectations that he would never amount to anything in life. However, upon discovering that the father he never knew has been brutally murdered, the spineless, clock-punching pushover is recruited into a secret society of assassins known as the Fraternity. During the course of his training, the man who was once an office-bound wimp develops lightning-fast reflexes and superhuman dexterity courtesy of his skilled mentor Fox (Angelina Jolie). Upon completing his training, Wes is assigned the task of dealing out death to the mythological Fates, who possess the ability to alter the lifelines of mortal men. It isn't long before the nebbish nerd-turned-agile assassin is erasing the bad guys with surprising efficiency, yet as Wes begins to carry the mantle passed down to him by his father, he gradually begins to suspect that his wise tutors are not the crime-fighting enforcers they present themselves to be. Now, with everything he ever wanted in life finally within his grasp, Wes is about to find out that the only thing more difficult than ending the lives of others is summoning the courage to take control of his own. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James McAvoy, Morgan Freeman, (more)
- 2009
- PG13
- Add 9 to Queue
Academy Award-nominated for his groundbreaking animated short of the same name, filmmaker Shane Acker makes his feature directorial debut with this expanded version of his acclaimed post-apocalyptic fable. In a world parallel to our own, the worst has happened, and humanity is in danger of extinction. From the ashes of destruction emerges a courageous rag doll named 9 (voice of Elijah Wood) whose unique leadership skills could prove the key to survival for those who have not yet perished. Perhaps with a little help from his friends, who include domineering war veteran 1 (voice of Christopher Plummer), aging inventor 2 (voice of Martin Landau), stout mechanic 5 (voice of John C. Reilly), visionary artist 6 (voice of Crispin Glover), and fearless warrior 7 (voice of Jennifer Connelly), 9 will prove capable of salvaging what still remains of this world, and laying the groundwork for a hopeful future. Produced by Tim Burton, Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted, Night Watch), and Jim Lemley (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly), 9 takes viewers on a surrealistic journey into a world where anything is possible. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Christopher Plummer, Martin Landau, (more)
- 2010
The eye-popping graphic style of Wanted is applied to Herman Melville's classic tale of high-water revenge in this Timur Bekmambetov-helmed adaptation of Moby Dick. Adam Cooper and Bill Collage (Wrong Turn) provide the screenplay for the Universal Pictures production. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide
