DIRECTOR: PAWO CHOYNING DORJI
STARRING: TANDIN SONAM, TANDIN WANGCHUK, HARRY EINHORN, DEKI LHAMO, TANDIN PHUBZ
RUNNING TIME: 1 HR 47 MINUTES
Modernization has finally arrived. Bhutan becomes the last country in the world to connect to the internet and television, and now the biggest change of all: democracy. To teach the people how to vote, the authorities organize a mock election, but the locals seem unconvinced. Travelling to rural Bhutan where religion is more popular than politics, the election supervisor discovers that a monk is planning a mysterious ceremony for the election day.
STARRING: TANDIN SONAM, TANDIN WANGCHUK, HARRY EINHORN, DEKI LHAMO, TANDIN PHUBZ
RUNNING TIME: 1 HR 47 MINUTES
Modernization has finally arrived. Bhutan becomes the last country in the world to connect to the internet and television, and now the biggest change of all: democracy. To teach the people how to vote, the authorities organize a mock election, but the locals seem unconvinced. Travelling to rural Bhutan where religion is more popular than politics, the election supervisor discovers that a monk is planning a mysterious ceremony for the election day.
FILM REVIEW:
(This review contains spoilers.)
“But madam, we were always happy.”
The Monk and the Gun is the International Feature submission for Bhutan. The film begins in 2006. The King of Bhutan has decided to abdicate and introduce elections for the very first time in the country’s history. Democracy is now a part of the country and the citizens are unsure what to think of it, let alone understand how the process works. As the country prepares to abandon its traditional monarchy, democracy activists travel to the most remote villages to teach its largely uneducated citizens on how to vote.
Choosing between candidates and policy issues isn’t the main concern. These activists are more focused on teaching the farmers how to fill out a ballot and place it in the box. The country has decided to do a mock election first, and to register as many voters as possible, before the real election in 2008. While this is all happening, a monk has been instructed by his lama to obtain two guns in preparation for the full moon ceremony. This will occur on the same day as the mock election. And it also coincides with an American who is also in pursuit of a gun and finds himself in the same village. What could possible go wrong?
The Monk and the Gun is a brilliantly made political comedy intertwining two key elements on Bhutan’s history: political modernity and economic modernity. This clash between tradition and progression is at the forefront of this film, providing insightful moments on Bhutanese culture, but also how the legitimacy of political systems is lived, practiced and can be transformed in everyday life.
While the introduction of elections may be seen as an empowering step in Bhutan, it also can’t be imposed on a nation if the people don’t want it yet. This democracy is being forced on people that don’t understand why they can’t keep doing things the way that’s always worked for them. Instead, the citizens of the country has taught the rest of the world how to live in a peaceful, safe, loving country without the need for guns nor the need to change their way of life, not yet anyway.
The Monk and the Gun makes you think what is lost when you think something has been gained.
REVIEW: A-
(This review contains spoilers.)
“But madam, we were always happy.”
The Monk and the Gun is the International Feature submission for Bhutan. The film begins in 2006. The King of Bhutan has decided to abdicate and introduce elections for the very first time in the country’s history. Democracy is now a part of the country and the citizens are unsure what to think of it, let alone understand how the process works. As the country prepares to abandon its traditional monarchy, democracy activists travel to the most remote villages to teach its largely uneducated citizens on how to vote.
Choosing between candidates and policy issues isn’t the main concern. These activists are more focused on teaching the farmers how to fill out a ballot and place it in the box. The country has decided to do a mock election first, and to register as many voters as possible, before the real election in 2008. While this is all happening, a monk has been instructed by his lama to obtain two guns in preparation for the full moon ceremony. This will occur on the same day as the mock election. And it also coincides with an American who is also in pursuit of a gun and finds himself in the same village. What could possible go wrong?
The Monk and the Gun is a brilliantly made political comedy intertwining two key elements on Bhutan’s history: political modernity and economic modernity. This clash between tradition and progression is at the forefront of this film, providing insightful moments on Bhutanese culture, but also how the legitimacy of political systems is lived, practiced and can be transformed in everyday life.
While the introduction of elections may be seen as an empowering step in Bhutan, it also can’t be imposed on a nation if the people don’t want it yet. This democracy is being forced on people that don’t understand why they can’t keep doing things the way that’s always worked for them. Instead, the citizens of the country has taught the rest of the world how to live in a peaceful, safe, loving country without the need for guns nor the need to change their way of life, not yet anyway.
The Monk and the Gun makes you think what is lost when you think something has been gained.
REVIEW: A-
