BuzzFlash Reviews
October 13 2005
Travellers and Magicians (DVD) A film by Khyentse Norbu
BUZZFLASH REVIEWS
As
BuzzFlash grows, we are also expanding our range of premium selections
to include more films from overseas. Particularly, we are looking at
offering movies that expand an understanding of other cultures in relation
to the United States.
We are beginning with "Travellers and Magicians," directed by Khynetse Norbu, who is often "addressed as Rinpoche....It is a traditional honorific title accorded reincarnated lamas of Vajrayana Buddhism."
We'll let Zeitgeist, the film's American distributor, describe it from here:
"The first film ever made in the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan.
Mystical journeys of spiritual discovery are set against the spectacular, evocative landscape of the remote kingdom of Bhutan in 'Travellers & Magicians.' Young government official Dondup (Tshewang Dendup) dreams of escaping to America while stuck in a ravishingly beautiful but isolated village. But when he misses his bus to the city (and an awaiting visa), Dondup is forced to hitchhike with an elderly apple seller, a sage young monk, an old man, and his beautiful daughter (Sonam Lhamo). Along the way, the mischievous monk tells Dondup a story of another young man who sought a land far away: a tale of lust, jealousy and murder that holds up a mirror to the restless Dondup and his blossoming attraction to the innocent young woman."
Shot in the language of Dzonghka with English subtitles, the film is in the Kurosawa vein of allegorical storytelling. The cinematography is stunning, and the pace unrushed. It's a breathtaking window to another part of the world, where a seeker after the "American Dream" finds that his journey may lead him back home.
Exotic, wise and lushly photographed.
BUZZFLASH REVIEWS