Erasmus has been disconnected from anything called culture, high or low, lately, so he apologizes for the lack of posts. He did TiVo The Story of the Weeping Camel because of a long-standing interest in Mongolia. (Yes, Erasmus is weird.)
He took it to be a charming documentary about a camel-nomad family in the Southern Gobi, until he noticed the "written and directed by..." credit at the end. Quoi? thought Erasmus. A bit of research turns up the fact that it's a "narrative documentary," which is to say, fiction. As such, it's much less interesting to Erasmus, although that fact illuminated the curious fact that a lama's sermon sounded like it'd been scripted by apocalyptic Western environmentalists. Moreover, it explained why so much of the dialogue remains untranslated. Erasmus's Mongolian isn't near good enough to follow what's being said, but a Mongolian speaker commenting on the IMDb says that it's comments that don't relate to the plot and that aren't "cute" enough.
Erasmus finds this type of noble-savage condescension reprehensible, whether it's appropriating American Indians, Kalahari Bushmen, or Mongolian camel herders. Still, the visuals are spectacular, the Mongols charming (though one-dimensional thanks to the dialogue edits), and the Bactrian camels strangely affecting animals.
Take The Story of the Weeping Camel cum grano salis, and it's an enjoyable experience. Do not take it as cinéma verité or you're at risk of succumbing to the filmmakers' familiar platitudes.
Ave, Tartari.
The Story of the Weeping Camel non placet sed pulchra est.
