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In the quickly disappearing world of Mongolian nomad tribes
six year old Nansal finds a stray dog which, against her father's
wishes, she keeps. When Nansel goes missing she finds herself
with an old woman who tells her the story of how a dog was
imprisoned in a cave by suspicious tribesmen. When Nansel's
father realises that she is missing, it is the dog that he
relies on to find his daughter...
The
Cave of the Yellow Dog was written and directed by Byambasuren
Davaa, who is of Mongolian descent and had previously made
The Story of the Weeping Camel (2003). The film won
four awards, three for the director and one for the producer.
You
are either going to love this back to nature film, with its
gentle narrative where nothing really much happens, or you're
going to be pulling your hair out with boredom. Before you
start, be sure that cute kids and dogs are your kind of thing,
because this film has them in bucket loads.
As
an examination of a disappearing way of life the film is fascinating.
The nomad's way of life has changed little over the centuries
and even the inclusion of the odd modern convenience hasn't
really had much impact. They are shown to be so far off the
beaten track that the modern world might as well be on Mars.
Modern society is alluded to in the film. For instance, the
father travels to the town to get supplies, though even that
contact is shown as negligible on the lives of the nomads.
The
actors depict their characters in a very naturalistic way,
giving the film an almost documentary feel - in a lot of the
scenes all it was missing was a voice over. The director obviously
has an undeniable tenderness when it comes to these people,
their way of life and the incredibly unspoilt environment.
She is however not so blinded as to not understand the inherent
problems of living so close to nature. In the film's case
it is the ever present wolves that threaten the livestock
and the abandoned dogs that have joined them that pose an
ever present menace.
It's
difficult to describe the film without making its sound like
a criticism; I was going to go for somewhere between Lassie
and a nature documentary, but that would be doing the film
a great disservice. In the end the film is a slow moving slice
of life, more to be savoured than gulped down.
The film comes with an interview with the director and a nice
set of audio options, stereo, 5.1 and DTS, but to honest it
really doesn't do anything with the last two except add a
little clarity. Visually the film is stunning, along the lines
of the first time you saw New Zealand in the Lord of the
Rings.
This
won't be everybody's cup of tea, given its slow pace and its
desire to linger over the minute of everyday nomadic life,
but it's a rewarding experience if you give it a chance.
Charles
Packer
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