Steppenwolf is a 2024 thriller from Kazakhstan, written and directed by Adilkhan Yerzhanov (Ademoka’s Education, The Gentle Indifference of the World and A Dark, Dark Man).  The film stars Berik Aytzhanov (The Composer, The Liquidator and The Legend of Tomiris), Azamat Nigmanov (Konvoy, Inseparable and Vtoroe Zrenie) and Anna Starchenko (Mavr, Cadet and Nartai).

Steppenwolf is a nihilistic, low-key sci-fi thriller in the Mad Max mould. It’s an inescapable comparison that is evident from the opening scene. The story follows Tamara (Starchenko), the protagonist of the tale, whose son, Timka has gone missing. He was last seen playing on his swing and has vanished, seemingly into thin air. Tamara suspects that he has been kidnapped and is wracked with guilt and suffering shock. She asks former detective turned vigilante, Brajyuk (Aytzhanov) to help her find him. He agrees because he thinks that Timka has been abducted by an individual who has previously wronged him, and he believes that if he searches for Timka he will find the person who has wronged him.

Steppenwolf is at times a hyper-violent, high-octane, post-apocalyptic thriller akin to George Miller’s Mad Max, but shot in Kazakhstan. Yerzhanov and his cinematographer Yerkinbek Ptyraliyev certainly have an eye for a set piece. The film looks amazing and the violence and action sequences are top notch, however the film does feel a little slow at times, never really achieving the success of its superior predecessor, however this is certainly not a bad film and fans of Mad Max and the post apocalypse genre itself will find plenty to enjoy here. The acting is very solid across the board, however, Berik Aytzhanov steals the show as Brajyuk, the deeply unpleasant former police detective turned psychopath, and Starchenko puts in a very solid performance as the traumatized, Tamara. 

The limited edition Blu-ray from Arrow films features a host of bonus features, including another of Yerzhanov’s features, Goliath(2022), a crime drama about a man called Arzu, who accepts the role of right-hand man to the gangster, Poshaev, but there is a question about his loyalty to his boss. 

There is also an audio commentary from film critic David Flint, a visual essay by Lee Broughton and a making-of featurette. On top of this, there is an illustrated booklet with interviews with cast and crew members, and a reversible sleeve.

 Overall, this is a pretty good release for this fairly obscure but award-winning film from Kazakhstan, which is not normally a country whose films make it to the UK & US shores. A Big shout out to Arrow for putting this out in the first place, but especially so when you consider just what a good job they’ve done with it.