Scenes
Kurdy-Yezidy (1932/33)
The film portrays the process of establishing a collective farm (kolkhoz) in a Kurdish village, focusing on the social and political changes brought about by Soviet collectivization. Director Amasi Martirosyan’s interest in this Kurdish subject originated from his experience as an actor in Hamo Beknazaryan’s film Zare (1926), the first feature film depicting the harsh lives of the Kurds under the Tsarist regime. In contrast to Zare, Kurdy-Yezidy portrays the changes in the lives of the Yezidi Kurds during the first years of Soviet rule. The plot centers on the new government's campaign against illiteracy and religious prejudice, which, according to Soviet ideology, enabled the continued exploitation of the poorest social classes. The sheikhs and kulaks are depicted as opponents of the new order who attempt to sabotage the Soviet authorities’ efforts to secure rights and freedom for the peasants. The film also addresses the exploitation of women's labor within the patriarchal structure of Kurdish society. Kurdy-Yezidy was produced as part of the Soviet literacy campaign and belongs to the genre of the so-called "Politprosvetfilm" (political-educational film), designed to promote socialist ideology through cinema. For this reason, some critics dismissed the film as a simplistic work of propaganda rather than a serious artistic achievement. Others, however, praised its ethnographic perspective, attention to realistic detail, vivid characters, and the successful combination of professional actors with authentic locations. The film’s documentary-style cinematography and extensive location shooting give it considerable historical and ethnographic value. Today, Kurdy-Yezidy is regarded as one of the earliest cinematic representations of the Yezidi Kurds in Soviet Armenia and an important work in the history of Armenian cinema.