The Monk and The Gun

This delightful Bhutanese comedy keeps you guessing about just why a venerable Buddhist monk sends a disciple out into the world to bring him back a gun. As fortune and farce dictate, this mission coincides with the arrival of an American smuggler intent on clinching a deal for an antique rifle, not to mention civic rehearsals for what will be Bhutan’s first ever democratic elections (the film is set in 2006, just ten years after western media — TV and the internet — had been allowed to infiltrate this deeply conservative society).

The film is the first Bhutanese film to be nominated for an Academy Award.

The Monk and the Gun is a gentle, joyful movie offering shrewd and surprising reflections from a culture far-removed from our own.

The film takes aim at American gun culture and western values in general. It’s beautifully measured, nicely played, and lovely to look at.