When Pawo Choyning Dorji embarked on his filmmaking journey with the 2021 Oscar-nominated sensation “Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom,” his talent for capturing the intricacies of life in Bhutan was immediately evident. His second feature, “The Monk and the Gun,” further delves into his artistic exploration of this evolving South Asian nation.
Set in 2008, during the lead-up to Bhutan’s inaugural democratic elections, the film follows the inhabitants of a small Bhutanese village as the unstoppable wave of Western pop culture and values begins to inundate their lives. While villagers are being educated on voting, a lama requests one of his monks to retrieve a rare antique rifle, coinciding with the efforts of a wealthy American gun collector to acquire the same firearm. The film becomes a timely plea for embracing nonviolence as a cornerstone in the construction of a new form of government.
Although the success of “Lunana” opened doors for Dorji to create films with larger budgets and casts, he emphasized in a recent interview with IndieWire the importance of narrating this story on a scale that mirrors the realities of life in Bhutan.
“I still wanted to keep the production of this film relatable to Bhutan,” he stated. “I didn’t want to cast someone overly famous and have the story shift towards ‘oh, he came to make a film in Bhutan.’ That’s not the story I’m trying to convey, which revolves around change, transition, and the loss of innocence during the mid-2000s.”
“The Monk and the Gun” had its premiere at the 2023 Telluride Film Festival, where it garnered positive reviews from critics.
“Much like Dorji’s breakthrough feature ‘Lunana: The Yak in the Classroom,’ it documents Bhutan’s ongoing modernization with a blend of genuine optimism and healthy skepticism,” IndieWire’s review of the film noted. “While the good intentions of the election organizers are evident, the filmmaker appears to have internalized a lesson that the world has been learning throughout the 21st century: democracy cannot be imposed on a nation from the top down if the people are not yet ready for it. Dorji’s perspective on his evolving nation resembles how a parent might view a young child: capable of anything in the long run, as long as the right steps are taken in the short term.”
Roadside Attractions is set to release “The Monk and The Gun” in February 2024. Watch the trailer below.