LUNANA: A YAK IN THE CLASSROOM

There might be few surprises in the feelgood narrative, but Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom is a film you are bound to recommend to all your friends and family.

The biggest surprise of the previous Oscar ceremony was perhaps the inclusion of Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom, in the Intenational Film race.

The picture hails from the mountain kingdom of Bhutan, a country not particularly well known for its film industry. But it turns out the picture is a real crowd-pleasing gem about a reluctant young man who is forced to teach kids in a remote school at 4,300 meters altitude and rediscovers his love for the cultures and traditions of his home country along the way.

There might be relatively few surprises in the feelgood narrative and the cinematic language used is rather basic, but what Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom lacks in ambition, it makes up for in heart.

Director Pawo Choyning Dorji, a photographer making his feature film debut, also coaxes wonderfully naturalistic performances out of an amateur cast and captures the gorgeous vistas of Bhutan in succulent widescreen images, adding extra glow to a film you are bound to recommend to all your friends and family.

release: 2019

director: Pawo Choyning Dorji

starring: Sherab Dorji, Ugyen Norbu Lhendup, Kelden Lhamo Gurung, Kunzang Wangdi