State of Dogs 1998

The trilogy that started off with an experimental documentary continues with a brilliant film that captures the life and death of Bassar, a stray dog. Shot gorgeously in the arid but harshly romantic Mongolia, this one was an awesome watch. I am tempted to draw parallels with Au Hasard Balthazar, which is one of my most favorite movies, from the perspective as how the movie becomes not so much about Balthazar or Bassar, but much more about the people around them, in this case the country around Bassar too. A very important phase of Mongolian history is captured, when the Soviets left their country and democracy was declared, through the memories and musings of Bassar’s spirit. As the first part, this one too is structured around a fable, and does a fluent job is combining the fable with the history and culture of Mongolia. The film ends with a superb performance by an acrobatic Mongol child dancer, which was shot with breathtaking beauty. Overall, a great film on the intriguing Mongolia and oh, I almost forgot, the starting sequence is marvelous and crackling with a strange energy that sets the right tone for the movie.

— SGhosh