57
Metascore
10 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 80The Hollywood ReporterSheri LindenThe Hollywood ReporterSheri LindenThe film is essential viewing for anyone who cares about the fate of the mountain region and the legacy of the Dalai Lama.
- 75New York PostV.A. MusettoNew York PostV.A. MusettoThe documentary does a superlative job of examining the half-century dispute over Chinese rule of mountainous Tibet.
- 70SalonAndrew O'HehirSalonAndrew O'HehirSarin and Sonam also lift the veil on potentially explosive divisions within the Tibetan exile community, which is torn between spiritual and cultural loyalty to the Dalai Lama and a widespread longing for true independence. (The filmmakers clearly belong to the pro-independence camp.)
- 70Los Angeles TimesKevin ThomasLos Angeles TimesKevin ThomasA fresh examination of the plight of the Tibetans still craving independence after a half century of either homeland misery or increasingly long exile.
- 60Time OutJoshua RothkopfTime OutJoshua RothkopfThe doc dutifully allows for these varying viewpoints, but in a mode that’s not especially captivating, despite a guitar score by Brokeback Mountain’s Gustavo Santaolalla.
- 60New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanNew York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanJust as you need two hands to clap, explain frustrated young activists, the Dalai Lama requires a reasonable partner with whom to negotiate. And right now, it seems, the Tibetans may as well have their arms tied behind their backs.
- The filmmakers do bang-up job expanding the frontline perspectives, aiming to subvert a ruling regime’s course and expose its cloudy human rights record.
- 50Village VoiceVillage VoiceClouds teases out the contradiction between the Lama's power as a symbol to the fiercely loyal Tibetan people, and that of his diplomatic voice, which he is using to push what they see as an impotent agenda.
- 50Boston GlobeBoston GlobeWhile never heavy-handed about its politics, the film makes no effort to disguise its strong anti-Chinese bias.
- 40The New York TimesNeil GenzlingerThe New York TimesNeil GenzlingerThe filmmakers, chronicling the Dalai Lama’s somewhat muddled attempts to respond to the protesters’ calls while not antagonizing China, do a fair amount of muddling themselves. They lurch awkwardly between reverence for the Dalai Lama and hints that he has become, politically, irrelevant or an obstacle.