Kelin Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		4.5

Kelin Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov December 6, 2010

Selected to represent Kazakhstan in the Foreign Language Film Category at the 82nd Academy Awards, Ermek Tursunov's "Kelin" (2009) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French distributors Emylia. There are no supplemental features to be found on this disc. Dialog-free, with a soundtrack by Edil Husainov. Without optional subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Kelin

Silent films are a thing of the past. But we still watch them because the people who made them had great stories to tell. The people who make films today rarely do. With a few exceptions, modern directors lack the imagination the silent era directors had, which is why they typically rely on various digital tricks to impress us.

Kelin is a wonderful dialog-free film from Kazakhstan directed by local helmer Ermek Tursunov. Last year, Kelin was selected to represent Kazakhstan in the Foreign Language Film Category of the Academy Awards. The film was also screened in the Discovery section of the Toronto International Film Festival. To the best of my knowledge, a local distributor never bothered to release it on this side of the Atlantic.

The film begins with an interesting ceremony - two young men offer various gifts to an older man whose daughter, Kelin (Gulsharat Zhubyeva), is ready to be married (translated into English, Kelin apparently means daughter-in-law). One of the men is a shepherd (Erzhan Nurymbet), the other a hunter (Kuandyk Kystykbaev). Kelin is in love with the hunter, but the shepherd has better gifts, which is why he wins the right to marry her. Shortly after the ceremony is over, the shepherd takes his future wife away from her family.

Kelin is officially welcomed to the shepherd’s home by his mother, Ene (Turakhan Sadykova), and younger brother, Kajny (Nurzhan Turganbayev). A family is created and Kelin begins doing everything a young housewife is expected to do – learn from her mother-in-law, clean, and make love to her husband. Fascinated by the experience, Kelin slowly but surely begins to fall in love with the shepherd. Then out of the blue the hunter reappears and all hell breaks loose.

What makes Kelin such a fascinating film to behold is the fact that it tells a magnificent story about love, lust and revenge relying entirely on powerful visuals. The main characters in it never utter a single word yet we understand exactly how they feel about each other, what motivates them, why they live their lives as they do. When these characters communicate, they do so using different signs, all of which are incredibly easy to understand.

The overwhelming majority of Kelin is filmed on the snowy hills of a beautiful mountain where wolves are roaming free. They have a special role in Kelin - like the main characters in the film, the wolves follow their instincts to survive.

The non-professional actors are beyond impressive. Their characters undergo powerful transformations that are unaffected by the fact that they never utter a single word. Zhubyeva, in particular, is fantastic as the young Kelin who becomes fascinated by her own emerging self.

Cinematographer Murat Aliyev’s lensing is terrific, never overindulging the poetic beauty of Kazakhstan. The various rituals the old woman performs after she meets her daughter-in-law are also exceptionally well filmed. The colorful costumes the main characters wear are also beautiful. Kelin is also complimented by a strong, very atmospheric soundtrack courtesy of Edil Husainov.

Note: Earlier this year, Kelin was screened at the Palm Springs International Film Festival and the Locarno Film Festival.

Kelin Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Ermek Tursunov's Kelin arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of French distributors Emylia.

This is the first Blu-ray release from Emilya to reach my desk, and I am very impressed with it. Kelin looks remarkable - fine object detail is outstanding, clarity exceptionally strong, and contrast levels consistent throughout the entire film (which is quite remarkable given the conditions under which the film was shot). The color-scheme is also impressive - the variety of blues, greens, grays, browns, and blacks look rich yet very natural. Edge-enhancement is never a serious issue of concern; neither is macroblocking. Both the close-ups and various panoramic vistas convey wonderful depth and detail. There are no serious stability issues either. Aside from some minor background flicker I noticed very early into the film, this is indeed a fantastic presentation of a remarkable film. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location. For the record, there is no problematic PAL or 1080/50i content preceding the disc's main menu).

Kelin Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and LPCM 5.1. Because there is no dialog in the film, optional subtitles are not included.

Edil Husainov's atmospheric soundtrack benefits greatly from the loseless treatment. Though the various minimalistic melodies are unlikely to test the muscles of your audio system, you will be impressed with the clarity and nuanced dynamics the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 tracks allows for. The wind, various howls, the massive avalanche, as well as the old woman's singing are also rather impressive. For the record, I did not detect any audio dropouts to report in this review.

Kelin Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Most unfortunately, there are absolutely no supplemental features to be found on this Blu-ray disc whatsoever.

Kelin Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Ermek Tursunov's Kelin is a beautiful, incredibly moving film, one of the very best to be released on Blu-ray in 2010. It is an instant epic. If you are in a mood to see something different, give Kelin a chance. I guarantee you won't be disappointed. The Blu-ray disc herein reviewed, courtesy of French distributors Emylia, looks and sounds terrific. It is also Region-Free. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.