Sleepwalking Through the Mekong

I really enjoyed this film about the band Dengue Fever. While at first it seems straightforward (an American band playing Khmer rock music travels to Cambodia) it becomes much more than that.

Past and present overlap as the band members discuss what made them interested in Khmer music in the first place. Cambodian rock 'n' roll pioneers not known to Americans are spoken of with reverence and affection. The film subtly injects Cambodian rock history when the band members explain where their influences come from while a wide variety of locations are explored. Footage of the country from years gone by is layered into the film. It's a feeling of looking at what Cambodia once was …and what it is now.

The film is a poignant look at Cambodia's music scene and the country in general, without deviating from the main subject of the band — which can be tricky but the filmmakers pull it off with ease.