Hollywood to meet Kazakhstan in new $30 million movie

Earlier this month, Banderas and Kurilenko arrived in Almaty to shoot some of the scenes of the film. Other scenes in which actors are involved will be shot in Hollywood, Kazakh MFA's press service said.

Altogether, 28 Hollywood actors will star in the US$ 30 million movie directed by Salamat Mukhammed Ali.

British actor Peter O'Toole, famed for his work in Lawrence of Arabia, 1960, is expected to come back to Almaty to continue shooting in early November.

A gangster melodrama with elements of action and martial arts will be the first film to be released worldwide in four languages: Kazakh, Russian, English, and Chinese. Dubbing will be made in Hollywood.

Armand Assante, who is a co-producer, will also feature in the movie. Japanese actor Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, who is well-known for his roles in "Memoirs of a Geisha", "Mortal Combat", "Hachiko", and the Chinese film star Bolo Yeung will also perform in the film.

Karlygash Mukhamedzhanova of Kazakhstan will play the leading female role. When selecting the cast, Armand Assante insisted on her participation. Commenting on the filmmaking process, Assante said he was impressed by the young actress' work in Yegor Konchalovsky's "Return to A".

Mukhamedzhanova's character, Aliya, is a prototype of Aliya Moldagulova, a young Kazakh sharpshooter who died in World War II.

"There is a lot of drama in my character's life. She is a real fighter. She is a present day Aliya Moldagulova," the actress said.

The film will be released in the spring of 2012.