Belgian documentarian Peter Brosens and American director Jessica Woodworth collaborated on this unusual story of a simple man who learns that the fates have something special planned for him. Bagi (Batzul Khayankhyarvaa) lives in modern-day Mongolia, but his existence is little different than that of his forefathers; he raises cattle and sheep on the rugged plains, lives in a yurt, and shares his humble home with his mother (Dugursuren Dagvador) and grandfather (Damchaa Banzar). Bagi is given
to severe epileptic seizures, and when one of them causes him to pass out and he doesn't awake, his family calls on a shaman (Tserendarizav Dashnyam), who is able to reach him in the dream world and bring him back to life. However, during her journey, the shaman discovers that Bagi has untapped mystical powers, and that it's his destiny to become a shaman himself. As Bagi and his family decide what to make of this, a fleet of Army vehicles arrives, with officials informing them that, due to widespread livestock disease, they must confiscate their animals and relocate Bagi and his relatives to the city. As Bagi makes his way to his new life, he encounters Zolzaya (Tsetsegee Byamba), a lovely dancer who supports herself by stealing coal, and with her help he discovers his true path in life. Khadak received its North American premiere at the 2006 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
Khadak is beautifully filmed and energetically acted, with standout performances by newcomer Tsetsegee Byamba as Zolzaya and Batzu Khayankhyarvaa as Bagi.
Khadak makes the most of Mongolia's vast horizons and swallowing space, the grandeur of emptiness, together with precisely composed pictures, making the whole thing seem like one of Bagi's visions.
The rebellion never achieves the mythopoeic visual potency it strives for; while passably adopting several familiar modes of art-house style... Khadak doesn't exhibit full, dynamic fluency in any of them.
Cinematography aficionados will be enthralled. Unfortunately, Khadak also has a story to tell, and does so in very slow and baffling ways, especially in a second half chock-full of muddled, exhausting symbolism.
There's an eerie, magical quality to the political and symbolist fable embedded in Khadak, a visually beautiful film about disappearing nomadic culture on the harsh steppes of Mongolia.
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