vernon film society
Bringing the best in world and Canadian film to film lovers of Vernon and the North Okanagan
TRAVELLERS & MAGICIANSCountry: Bhutan "…has a natural beauty and charm, and tells an important message -- that we can be very happy just by being aware of and handling what is in front of us." – Cinescene.com
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| The bitter and the sweet of temporary things
Dondup is soon joined by a monk who warns the young man about the dangers of dreamlands and tells him the story of two brothers: one who was content to stay home and study magic, the other who wanted to leave to find beautiful women in the next village. Eventually, Dondup and the monk are joined by an apple-seller and his beautiful young daughter – but Dondup grows irritated by this group who have attached themselves to him. Made with the same simple charm as THE CUP, TRAVELLERS AND MAGICIANS involves a cautionary moral, but the sheer vitality of its storytelling allows the film to transcend that schema. It uses cinema to tell its tale, but the oral tradition which is integral to its structure speaks to indigenous, more culturally relevant traditions. Despite its remote and exotic setting, TRAVELLERS AND MAGICIANS communicates themes which are universal to all of us - the grass is always greener on the other side of the mountain – and in this gentle fable, Norbu once again shows that what you have is to be treasured, for it is laden with wonderful surprises. "Delightful film played with panache by nonprofessional actors…the ironies of a young man (Dondup) already living in what amny would see as living in one of the last oases of peace and harmony in the world imagining America as his Shangri-La are nicely and humourously elaborated. And perhaps we, like Dondup, might pick up a little wisdom along the way." – International Herald Tribune |
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Like its highly successful predecessor, THE CUP –
a comedy about a group of teenaged monks trying to arrange
to watch the 1998 World Cup final on TV – Khyentse
Norbu’s TRAVELLERS AND MAGICIANS is also set in
Bhutan, the high mountain kingdom some consider the
model for Shangri-La. But if the country is indeed a
kind of paradise, some of its members view it only as
backward and locked into old traditions. This is certainly
the feeling of Dondup (Tsewang Dandup), a young government
official stationed in a remote outpost from which he
is eager to escape. Dondup’s dream is to live
in the United States. So he sets off one day in high-tops
and an “I LOVE NY” T-shirt, carrying his
Samsonite suitcase and a boombox – an incongruous
get-up in a rural community where people wear sandals
and traditional robes. Unfortunately, he misses his
bus. Trying to be philosophical about his situation,
he refuses to be deterred, even when his attempts to
wave down the occasional passing vehicle amount to nothing.