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THARLO

WATCH

Minutes: 

123

Director: 

Pema Tseden

Narrative

2016

|

China

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THARLO

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THARLO

Trailer

THARLO

Tibetan w/ English subtitles

High in the desolate, windswept mountains of Tibet lives a shepherd named Tharlo. He tends his sheep and rides his motorcycle, passing his days in familiar and traditional routines far from the city lights. But when Tharlo travels to the city for an ID card photo and meets Yangtso, a modern young hairdresser, his monastic life will forever change.

Leading Tibetan auteur Pema Tseden (The Search, Old Dog) first wrote Tharlo's story as a novella that audiences can read here in English for the first time, published as part of this DVD. In adapting his spare and poignant short story for the screen, Tseden is at the height of his directorial powers, using just 84 meticulously composed shots to channel Tharlo's world into gorgeous vistas of black-and-white.

Popular actor Shide Nyima makes his dramatic debut with a defining performance as the title character, a role that Tseden wrote with him in mind; he is beautifully matched by Yangshik Tso as the object of Tharlo's uneasy desire. An award-winning, film festival and critical favorite, Tharlo brings its characters and their world to edgy, explosive life.

  • Grand Prize & Student Jury Prize, 2015 Tokyo Filmex

  • Best Adapted Screenplay, 2015 Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival

  • INALCO Prize, 2015 Vesoul Asian Film Festival

  • World Premiere, 2015 Venice Film Festival

  • Asian Premiere, Busan International Film Festival

  • 2015 Vancouver International Film Festival

  • 2015 La Orquidera International Film Festival

  • 2015 Brisbane Asia Pacific Film Festival

  • 2016 Black Movie Geneva

  • 2016 Goteborg Film Festival

  • 2016 Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival

  • 2016 Wisconsin Film Festival

  • 2016 Atlantic Film Festival

"Issues of identity, clashes of culture and the nitty-gritty of sheep-herding are the themes which drive Tibetan director Pema Tseden's beguiling fable THARLO ... This is a beautifully judged picture from a director to note."

Wendy Ide, ScreenDaily

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