Tibet: Cry of the Snow Lion (2003)
After watching the oppression of
peaceful Tibet by the aggressive and violent communist
Chinese in this documentary, you'll be hard pressed
to by anything marked "Made in China" ever again.
Of course, this film is slanted so fully in towards
the Tibetan point of view that you actually start
dialing the White House on your cell phone during
the running of it. You will be shocked at the incredulous
story this film relates to you. You'll want to protest
in the street and demand to know why our government
has allowed such an injustice to continue with our
policy of silently looking the other way.
So let's just assume, gentle reader,
that you are already an old liberal softie like myself.
I have no idea what a right-winger or someone who
thinks they have a "better" slant on the story would
think about this film. I'm sure there are folks who
will find it lopsided or consider it full of half-truths.
The interviewees from the Chinese government (ambassadors
and such) say as much. Of course, everything they
say is proven false by the film and shown only to
compound the amazing distrust we have of the Chinese
government after seeing the film.
So screw whether this is a unbiased,
objective documentary or not; it isn't. This film
is an impassioned plea on the behalf of the Tibetan
people and the Dali Lama and Buddhists as well. Narrated
by one of Hollywood's most vocal liberals, Martin
Sheen, and featuring voice work by notable leftists
like Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon (as well as Shirley
Knight and Ed Harris), the film might seem like left-wing
propaganda if what we were being told wasn't so obviously
true.
For anyone even slightly interested
in Asian spirituality and Buddhist enlightenment,
the film is a treasure trove of history and information.
This is an engrossing, poignant and important story.
But even if the film were silent,
the images would be enough to keep our attention focused.
Tibet is a beautiful country. The snow capped mountains,
the lush greenery, the beautiful Asian architecture.
These images of Tibet's past idyllic existence are
simply gorgeous to behold. There are amazing images
of Tibet here in its every incarnation, its beautiful
past, its horrible destruction and its aggressive
rebuilding in China's image. But it is its images
of its still unspoiled natural surroundings that are
simply beautiful and make the film utterly captivating.
This film has some amazing ocular moments.
"Tibet: Cry of the Snow Lion" is
an eye opener. Hopefully this will act as a primer
to others (like myself) who didn't know the entire
story of the Dali Lama and Tibet. There's a remarkable
history of injustice, murder and genocide here, some
of it aided and silently contributed to by our own
country. And its something we should all stand up
and shout against.
Notes:
Viewed in Austin in December 2003
on a VHS screener provided by the distributor and
the Dobie Theater.
