Tulpan

"She's the only girl for him."

2009 1h 40m KK

😐

6.3

MID

★6.3TMDB · 55

DramaRomanceComedy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Asa, a young and cheerful dreamer, returns from his Russian naval service to his sister’s nomadic family on the desolate Hunger Steppe of central Asia, so that he can begin his own life as a shepherd. But before he can tend a flock of his own, Asa must first win the hand of the only eligible girl for miles—his mysterious neighbor, Tulpan.

“She's the only girl for him.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Askhat Kuchencherekov
Asa
Samal Yeslyamova
Samal
Tulepbergen Baisakalov
Boni
Bereke Turganbayev
Beke
Ondassyn Bessikbassov
Ondas
Nurzhigit Zhapabayev
Nuka
Mahabbat Turganbayeva
Maha
Amangeldi Nurzhanbayev
Tulpan’s Father

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Sergei Dvortsevoy
Writers: Sergei Dvortsevoy, Gennadiy Ostrovskiy
Languages: Kazakh, Russian
Countries: Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan, Poland, Russia, Switzerland

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

Released 17 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Kazakh, Russian.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 6 countries: Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan, Poland, Russia, Switzerland.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Sergei Dvortsevoy, shot by Jolanta Dylewska. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Askhat Kuchencherekov and Samal Yeslyamova and Tulepbergen Baisakalov carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "She's the only girl for him.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0436854 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Sergei Dvortsevoy directs. Jolanta Dylewska behind the camera. Isabel Meier cuts. Produced in Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan, Poland, Russia, Switzerland. Dialogue in Kazakh, Russian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Released 17 years ago.
2Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Kazakh, Russian.
3International production across 6 countries: Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan, Poland, Russia, Switzerland.
4Directed by Sergei Dvortsevoy, shot by Jolanta Dylewska. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Editor Isabel Meier shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Askhat Kuchencherekov and Samal Yeslyamova and Tulepbergen Baisakalov carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "She's the only girl for him.".
8IMDB entry: tt0436854 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 55 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Jolanta Dylewska
Editing: Isabel Meier
Production design: Roger Martin
Costume design: Gaziza Korshiyeva
Makeup / hair: Tomasz Matraszek
Sound: Peter Bräker
Runtime: 100 min · 1h 40m
Status: Released
Box office: $1,027,785
Original language: KK
IMDB: Tulpan (2009)

Awards

Asia Pacific Screen Award for Best Feature Film

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Sergei Dvortsevoy

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CRCulver2018-09-06
★ 5/10
The Russian filmmaker Sergey Dvortsevoy had gained a reputation for documentaries, but in the 2008 <i>Tulpan</i> he tries his hand at fiction with this story set in Kazakhstan. After serving in the Russian Navy, Asa (Askhat Kuchinchirekov) returns to the Kazakh steppe, living with his sister (Samal Yeslyamova) and brother-in-law (Ondasyn Besikbasov) while he tries to court the only unmarried young woman within hundred of kilometres. As a sort of documentary, <i>Tulpan</i> will be an interesting experience for viewers in the West, capturing the desolation of the Kazakh steppe and the hard work that herders there must do to eke out a living. Some of the younger characters feel the draw of the big city, whose modernity offers them an easier life than the dull steppe. As a linguist, I found that the film represented well the Russian-Kazakh code-switching common after the Soviet era, which only underscores how these people feel torn between two worlds. The arguable climax of the movie comes with Asa assisting the real-life birth of a sheep, which is depicted realistically so that the audience learns something, but thankfully not too graphically. But as fiction, I am less impressed with the film. I get the feeling that Asa's pursuit of Tulpan was the centre of the original script, but was mostly set aside after Dvortsevoy decided to improvise much of the film. The result is a lack of substance outside the pure observation of traditional life. All in all, it's worth seeing once and you'll learn something, but it's no classic.

Production companies