I saw this to a full house at the Toronto International Film Festival. It was artfully done, and skillfully told, this story focuses on a French man's journey through the steppes of Kazakhastan. This journey clearly matched the landscape: desolate, lonely, down-trodden. Perhaps sad. Provocative views, emerged both from the scenery and the loneliness that sometimes seared through the tale.
I enjoyed the views of the rivers and steppes, the animals, and the people. It was a view of a land and culture I have never seen. The encounters with Ulzhan, a French teacher at a Kazakhastani school, and even Shakani, were good momentum builders to a seemingly desolate trajectory, injected at the right time to keep the story moving.
In my mind, this movie is not about Ulzhan, but the man's journey. This probably created some unwanted expectations in my mind. I think if the movie were differently titled -- not sure to what -- it might have been better setup in my mind.
Nonetheless, this was a good movie overall. It was leisurely paced to capture the lost feelings of the story, well-acted, and with the right tone and backdrop to capture the bleak and subtle humanity of the overall movie.
I enjoyed the views of the rivers and steppes, the animals, and the people. It was a view of a land and culture I have never seen. The encounters with Ulzhan, a French teacher at a Kazakhastani school, and even Shakani, were good momentum builders to a seemingly desolate trajectory, injected at the right time to keep the story moving.
In my mind, this movie is not about Ulzhan, but the man's journey. This probably created some unwanted expectations in my mind. I think if the movie were differently titled -- not sure to what -- it might have been better setup in my mind.
Nonetheless, this was a good movie overall. It was leisurely paced to capture the lost feelings of the story, well-acted, and with the right tone and backdrop to capture the bleak and subtle humanity of the overall movie.