A River Changes Course
Director: Kalyanee Mam
Rating: 4/5
Kalyanee Mam has returned to the director's chair with her brand new documentary A River Changes Course: this is her first film since Inside Job back in 2010.
A River Changes Course tells the story of three families living in contemporary Cambodia as they face hard choices forced by rapid development and struggle to maintain their traditional ways of life as the modern world closes in around them.
First and foremost, A River Runs Through is really is a beautiful looking movie. From the opening frame to the final credits, Man really has captured some remarkable and stunning images.
This beautiful imagery is in stark contrast to the sense of loss that is the driving force in this movie.
A River Changes Course is a documentary about a way of life that is disappearing and few choices for the people who are left behind.
This movie is heartbreaking, intimate, and incredibly personal.
Mam is a Cambodian, and so she has a great understanding of some of the issues that are facing many of her countrymen: resulting in a documentary that is delicate and almost non-intrusive.
Mam and A River Changes Course take the audience into a world that many of us know nothing about.
The stories of Khieu Mok, Sav Samourn, and Sari Math are so powerful, that you find yourself truly rooting for them to survive and rise out of their hardship.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding their future, they face each day with strength and courage; it really is an inspiration tale.
A River Changes Course is part of the UK Green Film Festival.