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Citizens of a Central Asian republic have discovered that they share a name with alien invaders in an upcoming Japanese science fiction film, and are taking the news remarkably well.

The Japanese film Brave Storm, set to be released in November, is not likely to break new ground in the "giant robots battling each other while a city is destroyed around them" genre. But it has attracted attention in Kyrgyzstan after it emerged there that the bad guys are called the "Kyrgyz", .

The plot, which appears to borrow elements from The Terminator and Pacific Rim franchises, revolves around the last survivors of the human race travelling back in time from 2050 to build combat robots to fight the invading Kyrgyz alien race.

Although it is unclear why the film's villains have been named as such, social media users in Kyrgyzstan have received the news with good humour.

"I knew we were not just ordinary people," one said on Kaktus Media's ; while another noted: "We Kyrgyz have a sense of humour. We are alright and are good at laughing at ourselves."

Some said they thought the Kyrgyz angle to Brave Storm was a storm in a teacup, and noted how their Kazakh neighbours soon learned to live with the 2006 film Borat, which was merciless in its portrayal of the country.

And one went further, making a joke at the expense of the country's bureaucracy. "It is almost impossible to tell the difference between the monster in the film and an average Kyrgyz official," they said.

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Reporting by Elbek Daniyarov, Alistair Coleman

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