50
While never heavy-handed about its politics, the film makes no effort to disguise its strong anti-Chinese bias.
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70
Sarin 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.)
60
New York Daily News by Elizabeth Weitzman
Just 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.
60
The 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.
70
Los Angeles Times by Kevin Thomas
A fresh examination of the plight of the Tibetans still craving independence after a half century of either homeland misery or increasingly long exile.
40
The New York Times by Neil Genzlinger
The 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.
80
The Hollywood Reporter by Sheri Linden
The film is essential viewing for anyone who cares about the fate of the mountain region and the legacy of the Dalai Lama.
75
The documentary does a superlative job of examining the half-century dispute over Chinese rule of mountainous Tibet.