The Story of the Weeping Camel
User Score
9.1 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 29 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 27 out of 29
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 29
  3. Negative: 0 out of 29

Review this movie

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. BrianO.
    Jun 4, 2004
    10
    A lilting and beautiful "documentary"...don't get snared in the debate about what is real and what is fictional, just let this little film's warmth wash over you...truly beautiful Winner of the Audience Award at the Indianapolis International Film Festival.
  2. ChadS.
    Jul 22, 2004
    8
    Did the filmmakers capture a camel having an epiphany? That title is no metaphor. There really is a weeping camel, a mother camel; and is she doing this when "The Story of the Weeping Camel" is in a documentary, or fictional mode? There's a real curiosity factor about what the filmmakers did, or didn't do, to set up, then execute, the mother and child reunion. Even if it was scripted, these camels are manipulated much more artfully than those tigers from "Two Brothers", who have to leap across computer-generated flames. In a movie like this, two boys can travel a long distance by camel to buy batteries for their grandfather, without incident, like a sandstorm, or a swarm of locusts, to create excitement. As the boys depart on their errand into the "city", it's fun to speculate what obstacle a Hollywood scribe would concoct. Sometimes it's exciting to see nothing happen, except life unfold without the artifice of plot points. In a nutshell, "The Story of the Weeping Camel" is about people and their livestock. … Expand
  3. DanM.
    Jul 3, 2004
    10
    This is a wonderful movie--staged or otherwise. It was totally engrossing and one of those rare, wonderful movies wherein noone speaks and no cell phones ring! Enchanting and highly recommended. The best movie since The Cooler.
  4. MarkB.
    Aug 11, 2004
    9
    Someone once described a camel as a horse designed by a committee. A little unfairly, I think: to me they're remarkably endearing and, in their own ungainly way, rather beautiful creatures (but then, I admit that I don't work with camels and so don't have to smell them!) Their unique soundsalone--a blend of a hum, a whine and a tea-kettle whistle--provide most of the background soundtrack for this thoroughly charming, Robert Flaherty-like quasidocumentary, which if not for its inevitably limited audience would lift Botok the White Colt to the pantheon of all-time most lovable movie animals occupied by such fauna as Toto, Benji, Elsa and Babe. Botok's mother, for reasonsimplied but not completely spelled out, refuses to nurse or bondwith her newborn, creating a crisis not only for him but for the family of nomadic Mongolian camel herders who depend on these creatures for their livelihoodand survival. How this is resolved makesfor a feel-good climax that would make Frank Capra swell with pride while providing a memorable tribute to the universal power of music (and along the way delivering several well-aimed slaps at television, of all things!) It's possible, I think, for intelligent and reasonable people to debate the spirituality of The Passion of the Christ, the patriotism of Fahrenheit 9/11, whether The Village plays fair with its audience or whether the remake of The Manchurian Candidate needed to be remade at all, but this movie quickly zooms to the top of 2004's"What's Not To Like?" list. If a fairly graphic camel birth scene doesn't bother you (and it shouldn't) this is especially recommended as an excellent introduction to subtitled movies for your kids--to get them to develop and nurture the good moviegoing habit of NOT running 60 mph in the opposite direction when they hear about a movie that has "writing on the bottomof the screen".… Expand
  5. LoyceC.
    May 8, 2005
    10
    Beautiful film, amazingly primal.
  6. ThanhS.
    Jan 30, 2006
    10
    We need more beautiful films like this one, among this bleak world!
  7. Jim&DonnaB.
    Jan 8, 2006
    10
    Beautiful, amazingly simple story documenting 4 generations of herdsmen under 1 roof captured our concentration. Very engaging. Thank you for the effort to bring us this legend.
  8. RandyR.
    Mar 1, 2006
    9
    This is a very touching and pure movie about real life and real beliefs that I cant stop watching. I have seen this 3 times and am trying desperately to find a cd with the natural folk music involved in the movie, which I thought pulled more emotion from me than any thing in the movie. It was moving as well as heart wrenching.
  9. JayW.
    Jun 24, 2004
    10
    "Lack of dramatic tension" (NY Times) is for this film a ridiculous criticism. Instead of waiting for the other shoe to drop - the typical ploy used to maintain interest in domestic productions - we are drawn in and mesmerized by the everyday lives and struggles of some amazing folks.
  10. sashaa.
    Jan 25, 2005
    10
    Beautiful!
  11. CarlN.
    Feb 12, 2005
    9
    A lovingly constructed film that enchants and informs.
  12. AndrewR.
    Feb 5, 2005
    5
    Very tender movie. I generally like slow movies, but this film set new standards for lack of movement. Had a hard time staying awake!
  13. BrendaD.
    Feb 6, 2005
    10
    Amazing.
  14. armandos.
    Mar 6, 2005
    8
    This movie is close to being a documentary. There is barely a plot to follow. It shows a certain way of life that is disappearing-camels are being replaced by motocycles and at the end of the movie the traditional Mongolian family portrayed buy a TV-modernity will eventually take over the old ways of living.
  15. JudyG.
    May 27, 2006
    10
    A wonderfully film, inviting me to share in the simplicity of their life. The story was heart rending, very human, and so interesting to discover so much about another culture in so little time. I felt their faith in what they believe, shine through. The music was captivating.... I still search to buy it!
  16. PatC.
    Apr 16, 2007
    9
    The Mongolian herders are as oblivious to the camera as their camels. Part documentary, part simple story, ancient traditions meld with the modern world within a refreshingly nonconfrontational premise. I would assume some of the scenes were genuine and others were staged, but I couldn't tell them apart. This is as authentic and unpretentious a slice of life as one is likely to find captured on film.… Expand
  17. JessicaF.
    Jun 15, 2004
    7
    Lovely little film. Good job.
  18. UtkuI.
    Dec 25, 2005
    10
    Absolutely perfect.
  19. BrendaD.
    Dec 4, 2005
    10
    Amazing.
  20. KentK.
    Feb 23, 2005
    10
    Excellent, captivating. Heart warming. Simple and beautiful.
  21. Jane
    Apr 14, 2005
    9
    The ancient magical ritual against the modern/traditional background was super. My favorite parts were the daily family events inside their home. I am desperately seeking the music. The song from the credits is incredible.

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
81 out of 100

Universal acclaim - based on 30 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 28 out of 30
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 30
  3. Negative: 0 out of 30
  1. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: A.O. Scott
    70
    Lovely, uncomplicated though limited movie.
    Read full review
  2. Variety
    Reviewed by: Derek Elley
    80
    The film spins a beguiling web of detail that builds to a surprisingly throat-clutching finish.
    Read full review
  3. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Noel Murray
    80
    The family's few lines of dialogue are so integral to advancing the story that they may well have been scripted, but it's not that important whether The Story Of The Weeping Camel is more fiction than objective ethnography. If anything, the contrast between what's real and what may have been faked only adds to the tension between the natural world and encroaching modernism.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »