Unlike in the United States, where you often have to wait months for a DVD to be released, you can find copies of recent movies on sale at the local bazaar. These copies could be a little difficult to find where I lived in Almaty, since it was the area where most of the foreigners lived. Outside the city center was a different story, though. In Tashkent, movies and music are available almost as soon as you enter the bazaar (I just might have to buy Uzbek Hits 2008 this weekend!).
It appears that the most popular video of the moment is the new Indiana Jones film. Just about every vendor had multiple copies of the movie, burned onto discs that were clearly copied on someone's computer. Usually the films aren't the best quality, since they are videos of the movies playing on a projection screen in a theater. But how often do you get to buy a cheesy copy of a movie (in Russian) for the vast amount of 2,000 Uzbek som? That's a staggering $1.50! Plus, it comes packaged with seven other movies--including Iron Man, and some fantastic (?) Russian films. I'm looking forward to seeing what else I can find this weekend, and perhaps getting a copy of the new Batman film by the end of the summer.
Although unrelated to this post, I'm including a few pictures from Sunday in Shymkent. They include the Tatar Navruz (New Year's) celebration, and my new favorite "most ridiculous building" in the city. After seeing this building during my first week in Shymkent, I have high hopes that there will soon be other buildings to delight my sense of absurdity.
