Prisoner of the Mountains

"An extraordinary story of hope, courage and humanity."

1996 1h 39m RU

👍

6.7

SOLID

🍅

88%

FRESH

⭐

7.5

IMDB

★6.7TMDB · 71🍅88%Rotten Tomatoes★7.5IMDB · 4,795

DramaWar

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Two Russian soldiers, one battle-seasoned and the other barely into his boots and uniform, are taken prisoner by an anxious Islamic father from a remote village hoping to trade them for his captured son.

“An extraordinary story of hope, courage and humanity.”

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Cast

Oleg Menshikov
Sacha Kostylin
Sergei Bodrov Jr.
Ivan (Vanya) Zhilin
Jemal Sikharulidze
Abdul-Murat
Susanna Mekhraliyeva
Dina
Aleksandr Bureyev
Hasan
Valentina Fedotova
Zhilin's Mother
Aleksei Zharkov
Maslov, the Russian Commander
Pavel Lebeshev

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Sergei Bodrov
Writers: Sergei Bodrov, Boris Giller, Leo Tolstoy
Languages: Russian
Countries: Russia, Kazakhstan

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

30 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: Russia, Kazakhstan.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Sergei Bodrov, shot by Pavel Lebeshev. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Leonid Desyatnikov. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Olga Grinshpun shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Oleg Menshikov and Sergei Bodrov Jr. and Jemal Sikharulidze carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "An extraordinary story of hope, courage and humanity.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Sergei Bodrov directs. Pavel Lebeshev behind the camera. Leonid Desyatnikov scores. Olga Grinshpun cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Russia, Kazakhstan. Dialogue in Russian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

130 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2International production across 2 countries: Russia, Kazakhstan.
3Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
4Directed by Sergei Bodrov, shot by Pavel Lebeshev. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Leonid Desyatnikov. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Olga Grinshpun shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Oleg Menshikov and Sergei Bodrov Jr. and Jemal Sikharulidze carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "An extraordinary story of hope, courage and humanity.".
9IMDB entry: tt0116754 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Only 71 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.