Le Moine et le Fusil

From the director of Lunana, The Monk & the Gun is gentle in its approach, skilful in its execution and sharp in its political satire. An arresting & amusing comedy-drama that attempts to capture the upheaval in the unassuming ways of Bhutanese life as the nation prepared to transition from monarchy to democracy, the film creates scenes of confusion & hilarity without much effort, and offers an interesting outsider perspective to the country's culture & way of life. Simple, sincere & splendidly photographed, Pawo Choyning Dorji's sophomore feature exhibits more confidence in his direction and beautifully underlines the fragility of democracy through its earnest storytelling.

Incredible work and a proud moment for Bhutanese, Bhutan and film-making from this part of the world.

Spectacular interweaving of themes, characters, emotion, spiritualism, symbolism, and the very core of the Bhutan and her cultural significance and perhaps, its relevance in this day and age.

Story-telling at a different level.

Every single artiste bears out their roles. And the spectacular visual vista of beautiful Bumthang that's superbly captured.

Best wishes at the Oscars. May Pema Lingpa himself and the ever-watchful guardians of Pelden Drukpa all collectively shower their love and blessings.

Democracy is usually fought for. But for the Bhutanese, like shown in the movie, democracy came as a gift from it's King to his people. The movie gives us a glimpse of how the Bhutanese got democracy without any violence.

The ending of the film echoes the Bhutanese stubbornness in staying rooted, and their refusal to let the outsiders dictate how to feel about the changing times. Pawo made an excellent portrayal of the threat of western influence that comes with Democracy, with the character of Lopen Ron, however, he is left baffled and defeated by the country's eccentricities. The Bhutanese, very humbly and poetically expresses it's confidence in it's uniqueness.

Ron getting handed a Bhutanese symbol of strength and power in stead of the typical weaponry he is a fan of, is the best! This scene reiterates how the Bhutanese will continue to change with the changing times, yet still remain quaintly Bhutanese. Loved it!!!!!

I really don't know how to critique a movie or anything so I'll just say what I felt. When I saw the title of the movie, the first thing in my head was why is a monk and a gun together? And the reveal as I watched the movie and how everything came together was a beautiful symbolic representation and perspective to everything in our lives I'd say. The movie was set around the time democracy was introduced in Bhutan and I was just a kid that time so I remember not understanding much about it and didn't realise that our country was changing. Seeing the movie gave me a glimpse of how it went down and it was so fun to watch. Lastly Tandin Sonam I love you no homo, your character was my favourite.

I went and watched the film in the cinema, and I honestly believe that the film is amazing. With gorgeous scenery, a great story, relatable characters, and amazing acting by the cast, the movie is a true treat that has to be seen in the theatre. The one feature that stands above all is the cinematography by the director.

The cinematography is simply peak cinema, with not a single wasted movement; the movie does it's role of keeping the audience in their seats very well. The cast is distributed throughout the story without too much focus on one character (why do it when the story is of this caliber); something that we do not see in many films today.

The characters are well fleshed out, and the symbolism is quite interesting (although I don't think I got 100% of the allusions). The satire and comedic beats do not miss - again without over exaggeration - the comedy is well timed, generating a response from me and the other viewers at the cinema.

The best thing about the movie is the cinematography, and to see how well-directed it is, an experience at the cinema is not one to miss.