Journey from Zanskar
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Metascore
65 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 5 Critics What's this?

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  • Summary: Zanskar is the last remaining original Tibetan Buddhist society with a continuous untainted lineage dating back thousands of years. In nearby Tibet and Ladakh, in Sikkim, Bhutan, and Nepal, traditional Tibetan Buddhist culture is either dead already or dying. The horror of Chinese government design in Tibet is being matched by the destruction of global economics elsewhere. Zanskar, ringed by high Himalayan mountains in northwest India, one of the most remote places on the planet, has been safe until now. But that’s changing. In 3-5 years a road connecting Padum, the heart of Zanskar, with Leh, the heart of neighboring Ladakh, will be finished. The route which previously took up to two days by car will take only 4-5 hours. As economic growth descends on Zanskar it will bring with it an end to this unbroken Buddhist social tradition. Will the native language, culture, and religious practice be able to survive? (Warrior Films)… Expand

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 5
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 5
  3. Negative: 0 out of 5
  1. The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
    Reviewed by: Jennie Punter
    Sep 20, 2011
    75
    More heart-breaking and action-packed than one imagines from a monastery travelogue film.
  2. Variety
    Reviewed by: Ronnie Scheib
    Sep 22, 2011
    70
    Surprisingly entertaining.
  3. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Andrew Schenker
    Sep 20, 2011
    70
    Although the film might be forced to rely rather heavily on Richard Gere's narration simply to situate the Western viewer, the actor does unify a bumptious collection of material that, taken together, relates what has to be admitted is a remarkable story.
  4. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Rachel Saltz
    Sep 22, 2011
    60
    At times you wish Mr. Marx had sharper storytelling skills (or a better editor). Some important details seem clear only in retrospect, and some remain murky. Still, Mr. Marx shines a light on a place and a way of life that are rapidly changing.

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  3. Negative: 1 out of 1
  1. ftrvr1
    0
    So "The route which previously took up to two days by car will take only 4-5 hours" is bad thing? Maybe to some Western tourists it is, being a spoiler to their mood of enjoying " the primitiveness of the Tibetans". But to the actual people who live there, it is a life-saver, a road to the outside world, to a better life, and to modernity. "The horror of Chinese government design" is exactly that, building roads, railroads, airports, schools, universities, hospitals, libraries, post-offices, and yes, banks, supermarkets, malls, and bookshops, for a people and a region that has never seen them before. Maybe it is a horror to the Western tourists who'd rather see the Tibetans remain illiterate, uneducated, without even the most basic health care, fetching dirty water from the wells, and living in mud houses with no plumbing. But to the real people who receive these benefits, it is not a horror but a bless. So next time, when you want to tour some backward corner of world to hunt for exotics and feel good about yourself based on the natives' (off course, the ones that you have not killed off yet) misery, you should first try digging a cave in the backyard of your suburban house, and living without electricity or supermarket food, or your beloved smart phones and ipads, or your imported camping gear for as long as you can endure, and then leave for the "attractions" if your conscience still allows.… Expand

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