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France, Germany, Switzerland · 2020
1h 39m
Director Thomas Balmès
Starring
Genre Documentary
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Documentarian Thomas Balmès follows Peyangki, a young monk living in a rural monastery in Bhutan. As the Internet finally arrives in the remote village, Balmès is there to witness its transformative impact on Peyangki, whose initial trepidation gives way to profound engagement with the technology.
CineVue by Christopher Machell
Much of this documentary sequel to to Thomas Balmès’ 2013 film Happiness is beautiful and humane, but is more often simplistic and questionable in its exploration of the impact of technology on a traditional society.
While more than an hour and a half seems like a long time to make the simplistic statement that the internet is bad, Balmès has greater profundity in mind when disseminating astute observations about how modern necessities and communicative devices impact cultures and ecosystems.
The New York Times by Kristen Yoonsoo Kim
Balmès doesn’t arrive at easy, scathing conclusions about the internet. Instead, he lets the camera journey to unexpected places, leading to a different kind of meditation that strikes with deep emotional resonance.
The Guardian by Peter Bradshaw
A thoughtful portrait of separate lives and destinies.
Even if we see “trouble” the minute we spy that first phone, we don’t necessarily guess how this fascinating “speed of change” story will play out.
The Hollywood Reporter by Stephen Farber
This film will not resolve the question of whether technological “progress” represents an advance or a decline in civilization, but it certainly will provoke conversations about that issue. And the focus on a real person over a period of years certainly adds pungency to the debate.
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