So the other big epic Asian film I saw at the festival was "Mongol," which details the life of Genghis Khan before he conquered most of Asia. It's all based on factual info known about his life -- much of which comes from a very detailed secret biography written about Khan by the Mongols themselves. This document was only translated in the 20th century, and is discussed at length in the brilliant and entertaining book "Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World," which you should all read immediately! But the movie follows the Mongol bio exactly, and was shot in Mongolia and Tajikistan, among other places.

It's a sweeping epic and a compelling story, and Khan is played by none other than Tadanobu Asano. Go see it!