The Stars' Caravan

Starring:Murat Oljobaev, Zarylbek Dyikanbaev
Director: Arto Halonen
Studio: Winstar
Product Type: DVD

Average customer rating:

"It was an honour to bring culture to the nomads."
Documentary equal to Cinema Paradiso

The Stars' Caravan
Starring: Murat Oljobaev , and Zarylbek Dyikanbaev
Director: Arto Halonen
Manufacturer: Winstar
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000059HBZ
Release Date: 2001-03-13

Customer Reviews:

"It was an honour to bring culture to the nomads.".......2006-03-06

"The Stars' Caravan" is a documentary that's a feast for the eyes, but short on plot and structure. Set in the former Soviet Republic of Kyrgyzstan, the film shows the trials of an intrepid projectionist, who's determined, in spite of savage budget cuts (thanks to the collapse of the Soviet Union) to take film to the remotest corners of his country. He travels mainly on horse back to the areas dominated by nomadic tribes, and here, with his projection equipment, he shows such classics as, "Motorcycle Gangsters." In other scenes, (in more urban areas) a few people crowd into the 'cinema'--in reality, this is a large room where people watch a VHS cassette on a small television.

The trials of the determined projectionist mingle with the footage of old Soviet propaganda films, clips of the story of the national 9th century hero Manas, and news reports of a hostage situation. Visually, the film is stunning, and one scene even shows a man using an eagle to hunt (something you're not likely to see every day). Interesting comments, such as the projectionist's observations that he can be both communist and a Muslim: "we've lived through so many political systems" are juxtaposed with such inconsequential stuff as the outpatient lancing of a boil. Unfortunately, the lack of structure is ultimately disappointing, and the 60 minute film remains impressionistic rather than substantive. Directed by Arto Halonen, "The Stars' Caravan" is in Kyrgyz and Russian with English subtitles--displacedhuman

Documentary equal to Cinema Paradiso.......2002-02-22

The Stars Caravan is an amazing documentary that offers not only a fascinating look into a post communist society, but it also presents a powerful portrait on the power of film.

It's the story of a traveling projectionist that used to deliver the movies to the gypsy and nomadic tribes in Kyrgyzstan. It was an honor for him to provide their only look at the outside world and in turn he was treated like royalty. Families fought over whom he would stay with and he was an honored guest anytime he came.

With the fall of the Soviet Republic came the end of the government funded film program-and the propaganda films that were show-and he was left working on a modest budget. When funding ran out he is forced to show films to small groups on third rate VCRs and TVs.

Through it all he clearly loves the world of cinema and the escape and treatment it provided him in his life. He longs for a return to the communist ways in order to receive funding again, but readily admits that things are better now in many other areas of life. It's a touching look at real life story that shows the magic that movies can have just as Giuseppe Tornatore's Cinema Paradiso romantically portrays such a love.

With that said, the film is not perfect. The editing is confusing at times. In the beginning of the film present day film footage is inter-cut with documentary footage and old footage. It makes for a hard story to follow until you learn who all the characters are. Likewise, interesting areas are never explored or commented on. The main projectionist has a massive hole and stitches in his stomach. During the film he visits the doctor and his wife, but nothing is ever explained about his ailment. A personal connection to the character would have made the film perfect.

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