Bhutan is a small landlocked country between China and India. They are relatively new to technology and only recently have opened their borders to outsiders. A couple of years ago they had their first submission which resulted in an Academy Award nomination for Best International Feature. That film was called Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom. It was a cute little film but now they have another film that should be an awards contender called The Monk and the Gun.

I’m a big fan of films that have a message in them such as an environmental, political, or constitutional message. That’s the case with this film. In fact, it has two great messages wrapped up in one movie. Strangely, a film about the Bhutanese people would feature messages about gun control and the democratic electoral system but it does. This movie uses allegories to get its messages across but they are there nonetheless.  This is a good film for people to watch regarding these topics.

The king of this country is stepping down and the government as it were has decided to do democratic elections. This causes some funny sequences while also creating some drama between one family in particular. The husband wants to be all involved in the impending election while his wife is left at home to deal with the fallout regarding his mother and their daughter. It’s some powerful stuff. That’s just one subplot of many in this movie though.

Another subplot of note is an old Monk asking his assistant/ward to go find him a couple of guns for a ceremony he is planning on the day of the full moon. He wants them for a symbolic reason but what ensues is rather funny. Even though the topic of gun violence isn’t.  Another man picks up a friend who is interested in buying a gun from an old man. This turns into a debacle of the grandest proportions. In a way, it is like a Benny Hill sketch. That’s the music I was hearing in my head the whole time this series of events was happening. This movie has a good sense of humor about itself.

With this being a film about the Bhutanese people it also starred them as the main characters. These actors were relatively new to me. I didn’t recognize anybody in the cast. That being said they were all superb in their various roles. Some of them had more serious roles than others but they were all equally good in whatever part they played in the film. That allowed the viewers to focus more on the story.  

The director, Pawo Choyning Dorji, who also directed Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom once again uses the beautiful landscapes of the Bhutan countryside as a character in the movie. There are a lot of scenes of characters walking from place to place and rolling green hills are in the background. Another way the cinematography works so well is when two characters are driving around from black to place in their little car. This allows for the viewers to see this beautiful country in all its glory. This is a breathtakingly beautiful film.

The Monk and the Gun is a film that everybody should see if not for the beautiful cinematography for the messages at its core. It blows my mind that a little film like this can have such powerful messages but it does. This director is starting to become one to watch with each subsequent film he makes. This has got a real chance in the Best International Feature Film race come awards season. I for one am rooting for it because it fanatic.  This is what filmmaking is all about.

4 ½

Dan Skip Allen