Movie Review:: Journey to the Fallen Skies
Posted on 20 January 2011
I finally received my copy of “Journey to the Fallen Skies, Taug Lis Yeev Mus Qab Ntuj” on Saturday (but no one opened the mail until I did on Monday and much thanks to my friend Sara for buying and sending me the movie!!!). Monday was a federal holiday so no mail. Anyways, I wasn’t able to watch it until yesterday before class. I get off from work at 3:30, class begins at 6:00 and I needed to kill time so I decided to watch the movie on my laptop in the school library.
This movie opened with Leng (Wa Yang) a Hmong American walking along a country path in Laos (filmed in Thailand) holding his suitcase then it went from him walking on a rural dirt road to a little store where he met Gao Hlee (Dib Thoj). This movie is about Leng, a Hmong American who went back to his birth country of Laos to pay tribute to his late father. We also learn that Leng went to Laos to visit his father’s grave after he was diagnose with cancer. When Leng went to visit his father’s grave site he then started to see a dark figure following him or around him. Leng than started to get sicker and with the help of Joua Pao he slowly recovered, but it didn’t last for too long. Leng finally return home, but woke up on his sick bed as his pregnant wife awaits for him to wake up.
anyways… I have a lot of thoughts about this movie. How should I start, good or bad? I guess I’ll start with the bad first….
Okay… remember this is just my opinion and my thoughts, everyone thinks differently so therefore, don’t get offended.
Anyways, the bad thing about this movie was… I was wondering if they have a tripod to hold their camera because you can see the horrible shaking. It really bothered me because I can see the shaking of the video. I am trying to focus on the movie but I can see the edges of the movie moving around. I don’t know if they are doing it on purpose but it’s pretty annoying. I understand that some parts makes sense with the shaking but other parts does not make any absolute sense at all. Like Hlee said I get annoyed very easily, but I cannot help it that if I notice such things it bothers me. I try to ignore it but it sure didn’t work.
Another thing that bothers me about the movie was they kept zooming into their faces, it’s just not zoomed in, it’s zoomed in SUPER close and for a very long time. I wanted to focus on the whole thing, not just their faces. I feel like 90% of the time they were zoomed in. I wanted to see their surrounding, which I think would give great details to the movie but because they are always zoomed in it really pulled me away from the movie. I wanted to go on scene and zoom out so we can see more of the picture. There are a few parts where Leng and Joua Pao talks, I wanted to see the two of them together to make the image much stronger and give their conversation depts but they just love zooming in and I cannot focus on their conversations at all, when they are zoomed in so close all the time, it took away the power of the scene. I know I know nothing about capturing movies but I do know a thing or two about composition hence photography, it works the same, at least I believe so.
I thought the storyline/meaning of the movie was very good, I do like the idea but I just hated how this movie was very jumping from scene to scene. Right when I got into a scene they already changed scene and then I get left hanging wondering what just happened. I also thought some scenes were somewhat pointless. I also do not understand Dib’s character at all. I know she was a friend he met in Laos, but I really don’t see her purpose at all. When we are introduced to a character there is always a reason why that person is introduced and why that person is in the movie, but I still do not see the reason of Dib at all. What was the purpose of her character? I do understand that she liked him by the way she looked at him and what not but I still don’t see the reason of her character. I guess I’ll just say she’s a friend to help him pass time and talk to him? Thanks to reader Mai Nhia Thoa for clearifying the purpose of Dib’s character, here is what she said Dib’s character, I learned in one of my college Hmong course– true or not, it’s from a man who does traditional funeral sending the spirit off, when a spirit leaves the real world, there are many things that will try to lure the spirit that is traveling to find its relatives and home. Dib, from my understanding is that of the “many things” that tries to lure him away from his path of succeeding to find his relatives and home in the afterlife. In one scene, Leng gets mad when Joua Pao points fingers at Leng for being with Dib, this is so because Joua Pao’s character is like the txiv qeej’s guide that is keeping Leng on his path to find that afterlife home with his relatives. The sound of the qeej to send him off and to keep Leng in his path and not be lure by outsiders such as Dib even though it was portrayed that she made him happy during his stay just like how traditional hmong people will believe that dab or other creatures will try to lure the spirits of their love ones after death, in most cases, those spirits cannot go find their homes and tends to return back as a ghost not knowing that they have already crossed over to the other side.
Joua Pao’s character has a meaning and a reason unlike Gao Lee. Joua Pao’s character helps Leng back to health and I would assume he also gaves Leng an insight on life although they didn’t spend enough time on that.
I felt like some things were not explained fully therefore we were left hanging at some scenes. I wish they would had explained the dark figure and why he was there and why he kept coming for Leng. I THINK I know the purpose of the dark figure but then I am still unsure for the reason. I believe the dark figure was Leng’s spirit portrayed as death but it wasn’t fully explained so I am still unsure. Anyone who knows, please explain. I also don’t understand the purpose of the hunting scene, that was a scene that left me questioning what happened. Why couldn’t Leng shoot the chicken?
The acting was decent some parts were unreal but I pass that part. I shrug my shoulder and just continue to watch the movie since acting was bearable. (I shouldn’t say anything about acting, I cannot act either)
The good things about this movie… The quality was great of course minus the uncool composition and extra zoomed in scenes. Ummm what else? I am unsure at the moment… oh yeah, the soundtrack was great, very good soundtrack… the rest… Well I did mentioned the storyline was good, it just wasn’t carried out all that great.
So all in all, I would have to say from the movie list I had talked about back in early 2010 I am pretty much disappointed. Of them all I only gave a very good review to one movie, “Tus Ntsub Kub” and also “Nkauj Nab Siv Ceeb” although this movie was not on my movie list. But I must say all these movies I’ve seen were good storyline, it just wans’t carried out to the fullest. So I say it was another disappointment.
6 responses to Movie Review:: Journey to the Fallen Skies
Good review, I also agree on the zooming in and all that stuff, so very different from my perspective.
But anyways, to clarify, Dib’s character, I learned in one of my college Hmong course– true or not, it’s from a man who does traditional funeral sending the spirit off, when a spirit leaves the real world, there are many things that will try to lure the spirit that is traveling to find its relatives and home. Dib, from my understanding is that of the “many things” that tries to lure him away from his path of succeeding to find his relatives and home in the afterlife. In one scene, Leng gets mad when Joua Pao points fingers at Leng for being with Dib, this is so because Joua Pao’s character is like the txiv qeej’s guide that is keeping Leng on his path to find that afterlife home with his relatives. The sound of the qeej to send him off and to keep Leng in his path and not be lure by outsiders such as Dib even though it was portrayed that she made him happy during his stay just like how traditional hmong people will believe that dab or other creatures will try to lure the spirits of their love ones after death, in most cases, those spirits cannot go find their homes and tends to return back as a ghost not knowing that they have already crossed over to the other side. And the dark figure that keeps following Leng is himself fighting death. As you may recall, in most American stories or characters, death is portrayed as a character dressed in black and always has a hood on. That is death approaching him, but death also being Leng because he’s not able to accept that he’s going to leave. Throughout the movie, death follows him closer and closer until the very end when he’s back at home and it shows a glimpse of the character to be Leng, himself. And as of the chicken scene, I’m not completely clear on this, but as most traditional funerals, a chicken’s insides are “fed” to the corpse because that chicken/rooster (I forget which one) is symbolized to guide the person’s spirit to reach the homes and relatives of the deceased person, Leng isn’t fully accepting that he’s going to leave the world and that will be his guidance, but at the same time, he cannot shoot it because he was going to be “fed” with it.
I hope that cleared up some parts of the movie for you.
MNT
Mai Nhia, Thanks so much for the explaining of Gao Lee’s character, now that you’ve explained it, it made a lot of sense. As for the dark figure, I was thinking of the same thing but bc there wasn’t much explanation of it i wasn’t too sure. Thanks so much once again!
Thanks for taking the time to review this movie. However, it sounds like you didn’t fully understand it based on your reaction, which is fine. It’s a movie that not too many people, including Hmong people, will understand and fully appreciate. I saw the movie when it first came out in November and I have to say that the audience response was awesome! There were non-Hmong as well as Hmong people of all ages. I’d have to say that most people enjoyed immensely, including myself, for its strong messages and storyline. What separates this movie from many other Hmong-made as well as mainstream movies, is that it is original. It does not try to copy or replicate someone else’s ideas. It was also shot in a very interesting way. While I agree that there were too many close ups, I tend to agree that the style that they used was appropriate to tell the story. After all, keep in mind that the story is being told from Leng, the lead character’s perspective. The filmmakers were trying to get us to feel what he was feeling. So, at times, it was meant to give us a sense of chaos and confusion…. dizziness. Sense, that’s how he was feeling. But, you notice that towards the end, the shots get wider and more steady, especially when he wakes up at home. Those shots were some of the best, well-lit shots I’ve seen in Hmong movies. Overall, I thought the filmmakers did a terrific job of telling a unique story from a unique perspective… trying really to get us sucked into the experience. Remember, Leng is on a spiritual quest throughout most the film, so everything is a bit obscured and uneasy, therefore, you don’t get the pretty wide shots like in Moua Lee’s films. Bc that’s not the focus. The focus is on Leng and what he’s experiencing. I would encourage you to watch it again, with the subtitles on, to get a better understanding.
About the hunting scene, Leng simply couldn’t get himself to kill the chicken b/c he too was dying and did not want to take another’s life, not even a chicken.
Lastly, this is a film that you need to watch over a few times to fully grasp its rich, deep meanings. Since seeing it at the theater, I’ve seen it 4 times and each time, I get a better understanding. So, it’s not your average movie, Hmong or non-Hmong, that is predictable and meaningless. Journey to the Fallen Skies, I thought, was a well-crafted film, from beginning to end. Bryan Vue and his crew/cast did a wonderful job!
Sorry, one more thing, did you understand who Joua Pao really was? I think if you did, you’d enjoy the movie more and fully appreciate its underlining message.
Hi Moze,
I have to say that I agree w/ all of Maisee’s points about the movie, too. It was well done. Overall, this movie takes Hmong filmmaking to the next level. It’s an artistic film first and foremost, so I could live with the technical choices that the filmmakers made. At first, I couldn’t understand why it was shot that way b/c knowing Bryan Vue and his work, I knew he wasn’t an amateur director. However, as the movie progressed to the end, and you realize what he had gone thru, then I completely understood it. It was amazing! The set-up, the pacing, the clues were all there. Once the transition happened from Thailand to America, then it all made sense. At that point, I was able to look back and say “aahhh… that’s who Joua Pao is and that’s why they shot it like that” becuz it’s all from Leng’s POV (point of view), which makes sense. We can only know what he experiences in the spiritual world thru his eyes and his eyes only. Also, being that he is sick, it makes sense that he wouldn’t care too much about his surroundings. Plus, the shakiness made it feel like someone, like the dark shadow, was watching his every move (which is what happened). The dark shadow, in my mind, is simply Leng himself, his other spirit. The Hmong believe that every person has many spirits when I person dies or is near death. The journey that Leng went on showed just 2 spirits, Leng and the dark figure. To me, it’s a reminder that death is nearby, knocking at his door, watching his move… I thought this was cleverly done. In fact, this movie was very well-scripted from beginning the the very end. I’ve seen this movie many times already, too, and I must say each time I pick up on something new even if I know what’s gonna happen at the end. While the movie may start off slow and erratic (which was intentional), it gradually builds up and the pay-off at the end is well worth it!
I agree with Maisee that Bryan Vue, the writer & director, did an awesome job on this one. It sounded like he had a small crew, but a very experienced one as well. These guys have done many short movies on youtube before, so I know what what they are capable of. I support this movie all the way and look forward to more from this team. Anyone who has not seen this movie is missing out. By far, it’s the most intelligent movie I’ve seen so far in the Hmong film community. In fact, I think it might even be better than most of the mainstream movies out there.
Thanks,
Tom
I just had the chance to watch this the other day. I was actually told that when the original script was written, they weren’t planning to shoot it overseas. They were planning to shoot just in the US, but decided that the hmong could relate to it more if they filmed over there– hence, the shakiness of the camera because they didn’t have a crew or much equipment over there as they did while shooting in the US. We were also told that the film was intentionally filmed that way to leave room for interpretation. The dark shadow was explained that it was supposed to be symbolic for him facing his fears– which was ultimately dying. He was scared of dying, but in the end, he accepts his fate, which gives his spirit the peace that it needs to move on. I thought the storyline was very touching though. I liked it. Oh. Also, the whole Joua Pao thing, the way I interpreted it was that he was Leng’s father’s spirit. Leng doesn’t know what his father looked like, so he wouldn’t know. The reason why Joua Pao got so upset at Leng when Leng was spending time with Gao Hlee was because he knew that Leng was in the spiritual world and if he got distracted, he wouldn’t want to return home to his wife back in reality– which means he wouldn’t have woken back up in the end. So.. his father took care of him when he wandered into the spiritual world, but told him to go back home so that he could say goodbye to his family since he had accepted that he was dying. It was when he finally decided to go back home that he was able to wake up. When he died, his spirit was able to wander back to the place where his father had built a home was waiting for him, which is why you see Joua Pao coming to guide him on the path in the end.