This quiet, beautiful documentary film follows a group of young Buddhist monks in the remotest village of Bhutan, and how they are affected by the arrival of the internet in Bhutan and then in their village.
The documentary also follows a handful of young women in the capital city of Thimphu.
It is beautifully filmed, and if you like such films as 'Unmistaken Child' or 'Tulku' or 'Kundun' or even 'Seven Years in Tibet', you'll probably like this movie.
There is no narration and no set-up; all of the footage is self-explanatory through the conversations overheard. The only addition is occasional notes about time-frame changes, such as how much later a new sequence is.
There is a fairly stark contrast between the beauty of the remote high villages of Bhutan and the digital world of the internet; there's also a noticeable difference between the remote village and the urban life of Thimphu. As may be expected, the arrival of the internet in remote Bhutan brings the usual assortment of digital potluck such as smartphones, social media, internet romances, WeChat and messaging, video games, and so on. Although these things are commonplace to the rest of the world, they are quite a change for the young isolated Buddhist monks in the remote temple in Laya.
This is a pleasant, reflective, well-filmed and well-edited film. I recommend it if it seems like something you would like.
PS: I recommend watching it in HD, even if it's slightly more expensive, so you can enjoy the breathtaking beauty of high Bhutan.
The documentary also follows a handful of young women in the capital city of Thimphu.
It is beautifully filmed, and if you like such films as 'Unmistaken Child' or 'Tulku' or 'Kundun' or even 'Seven Years in Tibet', you'll probably like this movie.
There is no narration and no set-up; all of the footage is self-explanatory through the conversations overheard. The only addition is occasional notes about time-frame changes, such as how much later a new sequence is.
There is a fairly stark contrast between the beauty of the remote high villages of Bhutan and the digital world of the internet; there's also a noticeable difference between the remote village and the urban life of Thimphu. As may be expected, the arrival of the internet in remote Bhutan brings the usual assortment of digital potluck such as smartphones, social media, internet romances, WeChat and messaging, video games, and so on. Although these things are commonplace to the rest of the world, they are quite a change for the young isolated Buddhist monks in the remote temple in Laya.
This is a pleasant, reflective, well-filmed and well-edited film. I recommend it if it seems like something you would like.
PS: I recommend watching it in HD, even if it's slightly more expensive, so you can enjoy the breathtaking beauty of high Bhutan.
