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The Horse Thieves. Roads of Time

Name: The Horse Thieves. Roads of Time
Director: Lisa Takeba, Yerlan Nurmukhambetov
Released: 2021
Duration: 84 min

Representation Score

6.1/10

Good

2021

Director

Lisa Takeba, Yerlan Nurmukhambetov

Runtime

84 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

The film stands out through its commitment to non-Western storytelling. By centering a Kazakhstani family and using local customs, it avoids typical Hollywood formulas. Instead, it emphasizes regional authenticity. The narrative's strength lies in its subversion of traditional gender roles, placing a female protagonist in a leadership position. This shift drives the plot from stability to a journey of survival led by the mother. However, the film lacks representation of LGBTQ+ identities and disability. While culturally specific, the focus remains narrow, centered primarily on the nuclear family unit.

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Category Breakdown

Does The Horse Thieves. Roads of Time have LGBTQ+ representation?

Fair

The story revolves around a nuclear family dealing with tragedy. There is no indication of LGBTQ+ individuals having significant roles or non-straight relationships.

How does The Horse Thieves. Roads of Time portray gender?

Good

The film challenges traditional gender roles by focusing on a mother who becomes the primary decision-maker after her husband dies. She guides her children through a journey of survival.

How racially and ethnically diverse is The Horse Thieves. Roads of Time?

Excellent

The film highlights a Kazakhstani setting with high ethnic specificity. It moves away from Western-centric narratives to prioritize a non-Western cultural context.

How does The Horse Thieves. Roads of Time represent religion and culture?

Good

The story explores the vulnerability of traditional structures and subsistence-based lifestyles. It shows a family displaced by violence, navigating rural or nomadic settings.

Does The Horse Thieves. Roads of Time include disability representation?

Minimal

There is no mention of characters with visible or invisible disabilities in the provided narrative details.

Present on Screen

Highlights a non-Western, Kazakhstani cultural landscape.
Subverts traditional gender roles by placing a female protagonist in a leadership position.
Avoids Western-centric clichés by emphasizing localized perspectives.

Limited or Absent

Lacks representation of LGBTQ+ identities or queer ability to act.
No characters with visible or invisible disabilities are mentioned.
The narrative focus remains narrow, centered primarily on the nuclear family unit.

Official Synopsis

Father of little Olzhas is killed by horse thieves on the day he goes to a market. Now, his mother decides to move back to her hometown with him and his little sisters together with the horses the father has left behind. A strange man shows up on their door asking to meet Olzhas for once, and volunteers to help their move.

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