The Sun Behind The Clouds (Friday, April 2, 2010) (26)

The title of the documentary The Sun Behind The Clouds refers to the Dalai Lama and how at some point in the future he will be able to regain his position as a cultural, political and religious figure for the Tibetan people. Just as clouds might cover the sun on an overcast day, it is still there; when the clouds clear, the sun will shine on the land and the people.

This is the central theme of this film - a historical look at the Tibetan liberation movement and the relatively new conflict within the Tibetan people after the Dalai Lama changed his position slightly several years ago. His Holiness does not directly advocate for the ouster of China from Tibet, but rather for a "Middle Road" approach for the right of his people to live in their homeland, which will remain in China and practice the religious they choose without government pressure to not practice. He also would like to see China relax its efforts to wipe Tibetan culture (its music, clothing, customs, etc.) off the map by imposing more traditional Chinese culture on the remaining Tibetans living in Lhasa and throughout the nation.

The film lays out a very easy-to-follow history of Tibet in the 20th Century and how the Chinese came in an how the Dalai Lama fled to India. It shows how the Free Tibet movement has gained cause celeb status and how passionately the Tibetan people inside and outside Tibet feel about it. The filmmakers follow a march from the Dalai Lama's current home in exile, Dharamsala, India, to Lhasa by hundreds of faithful Tibetans in advance of the Beijing Olympics of 2008. This march led to riots in Tibet as the people got excited and mobilized for a fight with the Chinese Communists. As this is happening, the Dalai Lama is touring the world speaking out about peace and understanding.

There is a very interesting moment when one Tibetan activist talks about the schism the Dalai Lama has created within his people. He is both head of the Tibetan government in exile as well as its spiritual and cultural leader. What he says is generally taken to be a divine truth, however, he is a political human whose followers sometimes disagree with him. There has developed over the years a group of strict liberationists who see anything short of the return of absolute sovereignty to be a failure. These people cite as evidence earlier statements of the Dalai Lama from 30+ years ago. There is another group who follow what the Dalai Lama says directly as gospel, so as his opinion has evolved and become more moderate and even-handed, they have changed their minds too.

All of this is a very big problem for a peaceful nation with no standing army. Their options are rather limited - especially when the Chinese government treats them with such contempt (if they even 'treat' them at all). The Dalai Lama has an impossible dilemma of whether to keep fighting a battle he probably can never win while his culture gets slowly erased from the planet, or to give in to the reality and build "a new Tibet outside of Tibet" for the survival of his people and their way of life.

This is a very interesting movie that tells a good, clear story in a very approachable way. It shows the difficulty of the situation and does not advocate one position or another.

Stars: 3 of 4