Cave Of The Yellow Dog
Director: Byambasuren Davaa
Rated: G
Palace Nova
Now screening


As the global economy expands and media technology becomes more sophisticated, even the oldest and remotest tribal communities find themselves pulled into the maelstrom. One of the benefits of the expansion of cinema is that we have the privilege of hearing new voices and stories to which we can relate hopefully at an emotional level. The dilemma is that there is always a two-way exchange. We get to hear them, but they get to hear us - and at what cost? In 'The Cave Of The Yellow Dog', director Byambasuren Davaa uses a rural Mongolian family eking out a subsistence existence in an isolated picturesque landscape to show us what we have and are about to lose.

The Batchuluun family - father Urindarj, mother Buyandalam and their three children - live in a yurt in the Mongolian highlands. Eldest daughter Nansal has just returned from boarding school in the city. While collecting dung for her mother, she finds a dog in a cave and brings him home. Urindarj orders her to let it go, fearful that the dog has spent too much time in the company of wolves and will attack his sheep - and this is as tense as the story gets. Will Nansal get to keep her dog that she believes to be the legendary Yellow Dog?

On one level, the film is a Mongolian 'Lassie'. The camera valorizes the family's culture lovingly by dwelling patiently and frequently on indigenous customs and routines. We learn how to dismantle a yurt, make cheese and skin an animal. However, Davaa uses visual embellishments to show a bigger picture. Urindarj herds his animals on horseback, but uses a motorcycle to travel to the city. Buddhism takes the form of a porcelain figurine of the boy God and a framed photograph of the Dalai Lama. Whether it's a new Tupperware ladle, sweets, cigarettes or a flashlight, western 'civilization' creeps in inexorably by stealth.

The documentary style of the film is enhanced by the natural performances from its real family of non-actors. Nansal is convincing and charming without the usual Hollywood child actor tricks. Perhaps the film suffers fractionally from a National Geographic feel, too many cute animals (vultures excepted) and children with winning smiles. Nevertheless, the script and direction are sharp and keep the narrative from descending into schmaltz.

As you would expect from a film of this type and rating, the ending is neat and satisfying. However, Davaa undercuts the joy in his final shot by showing the family moving in the opposite direction to a jeep and a loudspeaker reminds them that an election is nigh and that they have to vote.

If you have young children and are prepared to accept the challenge of subtitles, invest in 'The Cave Of The Yellow Dog' rather than the crass American fare that invades our screens in the school holidays.

Mal Byrne