When is a fictional story so close to the reality of the story it's telling, that it feels like a documentary? When it's done like this.
Telling the story set among a tribe of Dolpo people on the Tibetan plateau, who make an arduous trek every year to take the only resource they have to trade; salt, down to the plains to collect enough grain for the village to survive the winter, director Eric Valli, has populated his tale with real Dolpo chiefs, lamas and tribesmen and the film is shot completely on site in the very villages and trails they make the trek on every year.
The film is set around a generational rivalry between the old chief, whos judgement has become clouded by the grief of losing his son and heir and the young man positioning himself as the new chief, the sons best friend and second. In and around that floats the sons widow and son looking for direction and stability as the new tribal order asserts itself.
Truly breath-taking visuals and a gentle story that feels so real thanks to non-actors who are so honest in their portrayals seemingly because they don't know how else to be (seriously, there are dramatic story moments where it's quite stunning to realise these people have never acted before) creates a window on a world I barely even knew existed.
Again, this essentially felt like a docu-drama simply because it felt so utterly authentic and genuine.
An absolutely beautiful and captivating film experience. I really adored this.
