Awesome documentary. As a non-Mongolian that married into a Mongolian family, I thought I had a pretty good understanding of the culture and a bit of history knowledge, but Robert does a wonderful job explaining some of the key aspects of Mongolia's history. There seems to be more focus in the 1921 - 2022 period which experienced a dramatic change in culture, politics, and Westernization while maintaining its core heritage as proud Mongolians.
What isn't shown in the movie, but deserves a boat load of recognition is how DIFFICULT it is to make this movie... as someone who has also traveled extensively in the Mongolian countryside, there is a ton of rough off-roading involved, little cell reception, insane weather (can go down to -40 c or -40 F in winter), heavy population in the city during the winter (exceeding 999 AQI), difficult sleeping accommodations (compared to Western standards) and a meat-heavy diet when leaving Ulaanbaatar. Kudos to Robert and the film crew for their endurance and thanks to all the amazing Mongolian people that contributed to this documentary. It's perhaps the finest documentary made about Mongolian in the last 100 years.
What isn't shown in the movie, but deserves a boat load of recognition is how DIFFICULT it is to make this movie... as someone who has also traveled extensively in the Mongolian countryside, there is a ton of rough off-roading involved, little cell reception, insane weather (can go down to -40 c or -40 F in winter), heavy population in the city during the winter (exceeding 999 AQI), difficult sleeping accommodations (compared to Western standards) and a meat-heavy diet when leaving Ulaanbaatar. Kudos to Robert and the film crew for their endurance and thanks to all the amazing Mongolian people that contributed to this documentary. It's perhaps the finest documentary made about Mongolian in the last 100 years.
