''The Legend of the Suram Fortress'' ( ka, ამბავი სურამის ციხისა) is a 1985

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super- ...

directed by

Georgian SSR The Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic (Georgian SSR; ka, საქართველოს საბჭოთა სოციალისტური რესპუბლიკა, tr; russian: Грузинская Советская Соц� ...

-born

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

director

Sergei Parajanov Sergei Parajanov, ka, სერგო ფარაჯანოვი, uk, Сергій Параджанов (January 9, 1924 – July 20, 1990) was an Armenian filmmaker. Parajanov is regarded by film critics, film historians and filmmakers t ...

and Georgian actor

Dodo Abashidze David "Dodo" Abashidze ( ka, დავით ��ოდოაბაშიძე; russian: Дави́д Ива́нович Абаши́дзе; 1 May 1924 – 26 January 1990) was a Soviet Georgian film actor and director. Abashidze, who joined ...

's first film after 15 years of censorship in the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

, it is a film stylistically linked with his earlier''

The Color of Pomegranates ''The Color of Pomegranates'' is a 1969 Soviet Armenian art film written and directed by Sergei Parajanov. The film is a poetic treatment of the life of 18th-century Armenian poet and troubadour Sayat-Nova. It has appeared in many polls as one of ...

'' (1968): The film consists of a series of tableaux; once again minimal dialogue is used; the film abounds in surreal, almost oneiric power.

Plot

The story is a retelling of a well-known Georgian folk-tale brought into written literature by the 19th-century writer

Daniel Chonkadze Daniel Chonkadze ( ka, დანიელ ჭონქაძე) (1830 – June 16, 1860) was a Georgian novelist primarily known for his resonant novella ''Suramis tsikhe'' (" Surami Fortress"). Chonkadze was born to a peasant family near Dushe ...

. Durmishkhan is a

serf Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism, and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery, which developed ...

freed by his master. Now, he has to buy the freedom of his lover Vardo to marry her. He leaves his land and encounters a merchant named Osman Agha who tells his story. He was born a serf named Nodar Zalikashvili. After he had lost his mother due to his master's cruelty, he killed his master, fled, and embraced

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...

to avoid persecution. Durmishkhan now starts to work for Osman Agha and marries another woman, who gives birth to a boy named Zurab. Meanwhile, Vardo becomes a fortune teller. Osman Agha leaves his trade to Durmishkhan and converts to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...

. In a dream a group of Muslims kill him for being a ''

murtad Apostasy in Islam ( ar, ردة, or , ) is commonly defined as the abandonment of Islam by a Muslim, in thought, word, or through deed. An apostate from Islam is referred to by using the Arabic and Islamic term ''murtād'' (). It includes no ...

''. Zurab grows up and starts to work with his father. Durmishkhan, having converted to Islam, has become a stranger to his land and people. Georgia comes under the threat of Muslim invaders and the king gives orders to bolster all fortresses in the country. However, Suram Fortress continues to crumble. Durmishkhan returns to Muslim territory. King's men come to Vardo the fortune teller to have her solve the mystery of Suram Fortress. Vardo tells that a blue-eyed young man of the country must be bricked up alive in order for the fortress to stand. Zurab sacrifices himself to save his country and its Christian faith.

Cast

* Leila Alibegashvili as Young Vardo *

Zurab Kipshidze Zurab Kipshidze ( ka, ზურაბ ყიფშიძე; 10 Aug 1953) is a Georgian film and theatre actor. He appeared in 58 films between 1966 and 2009. In 2013 he was a member of the jury at the 35th Moscow International Film Festival. Fi ...

as Durmishkhan *

as Osman Agha (older Nodar)/Simon *

Sofiko Chiaureli Sophia Chiaureli ( ka, სოფიკო ჭიაურელი; 21 May 1937 – 2 March 2008), professionally known as Sofiko Chiaureli, was a Soviet Georgian actress. Thought to be the muse of filmmaker Sergei Parajanov, she played a sig ...

as Old Vardo * Levan Uchaneishvili as Zurab (as L. Uchaneishvili)

Awards

*1986:

Sitges - Catalan International Film Festival The Sitges Film Festival ( ca, Festival Internacional de Cinema Fantàstic de Catalunya, links=no) is an annual film festival held in Sitges, Spain, specialized in fantasy and horror films, of which it is considered one of the world's foremost in ...

- Caixa de Catalunya Award *1987:

Rotterdam International Film Festival The International Film Festival Rotterdam (IFFR) is an annual film festival held at the end of January in various locations in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Since its foundation in 1972, it has maintained a focus on independent and experimental fi ...

- Rotterdam Award *1987:

São Paulo International Film Festival The São Paulo International Film Festival ( pt, Mostra Internacional de Cinema de São Paulo), also known internationally as Mostra, is an annual film festival held in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. A non-profit event, the festival is organi ...

- Critics Award

Cultural references

Black metal band Voidcraeft used clips from the film for their song ''The Vertical Mammal''.

References

External links