LUNANA: A YAK IN THE CLASSROOM
SYNOPSIS
Academy Award Nominee: Best International Film
A young teacher in modern Bhutan, Ugyen, shirks his duties while planning to go to Australia to become a singer. As a reprimand, his superiors send him to the most remote school in the world, a glacial Himalayan village called Lunana, to complete his service. He finds himself exiled from his Westernized comforts after an arduous 8 day trek just to get there. There he finds no electricity, no textbooks, not even a blackboard. Though poor, the villagers extend a warm welcome to their new teacher, but he faces the daunting task of teaching the village children without any supplies. He wants to quit and go home, but he begins to learn of the hardship in the lives of the beautiful children he teaches, and begins to be transformed through the amazing spiritual strength of the villagers.
Director
Pawo Choyning Dorji
WITH
Sherab Dorji, Ugyen Norbu Lhendup, Kelden Lhamo Gurung, Pem Zam, Sangay Lham, Chimi Dem
Run Time
1 hour, 50 minutes
Released
January 21, 2022
Distributed by
Samuel Goldwyn Films
HEARING AND VISUAL ASSISTANCE
Subtitled/Open Captions
Assisted Listening
Country
Bhutan, China
SUBTITLES
Dzongkha with English subtitles
NOT RATED
Many of the films shown at The Ross are not rated due to the prohibitive cost of acquiring a rating from the Motion Picture Association of America. Consequently, as many of these films contain graphic content, viewer discretion is advised.
SHOWINGS
APR 22 | FRI
4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
APR 23 | SAT
12:15, 2:35, 4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
APR 24 | SUN
12:15, 2:35, 4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
APR 25 | MON
4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
APR 26 | TUE
4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
APR 27 | WED
4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
APR 28 | THU
4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
APR 29 | FRI
4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
APR 30 | SAT
12:15, 2:35, 4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
MAY 1 | SUN
12:15, 2:35, 4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
MAY 2 | MON
4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
MAY 3 | TUE
4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
MAY 4 | WED
4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
MAY 5 | THU
4:55, 7:15, 9:35 p.m.
Reviews
“[LUNANA: A YAK IN THE CLASSROOM] is a fable, to be sure, and one that unfolds at a leisurely pace, not a tough-minded psychological drama. But it’s sharp-witted as well as soulful, reasonably suspenseful and brings news from a little-known area of the world.”
“Opening the doors to a land and people most Westerners know little about, the director crafts a crowd-pleaser in stunning, mostly unseen locations whose charms weather even its most idealistically patriotic and overly saccharine notes.”