By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3 cats
Director: Ben Hopkins
Country: united_kingdom
Year: 2006
Running time: 84
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0496218/
Bruce says: “Judging the merits of a documentary can be daunting. Has the filmmaker made a focused statement? Does the film develop a mosaic based on a topic or theme? What about the truth – should the filmmaker be bound to include all the important facts or can facts be handpicked to meet the filmmaking needs?
“37 USES FOR A DEAD SHEEP is a film with some important details missing. The film traces the wanderings of the Pamir Kirghiz, a tribe which has migrated from Russia to China, then to Afghanistan, through Pakistan. A decade or so ago, they finally relocated in Turkey. We are led to believe that these are a band of poor peasants who aimlessly wandered about until
they could be peacefully settled, The director, Ben Hopkins, let us in on the secret that not all of the Pamir Kirghiz are poor and that Turkey allowed them to relocate in what is essential a Kurdish part of the country, in other words the Pamir Kirghiz are being used as a political wedge. And, per usual, a few may have made great sums of money in the process.
“Hopkins reenacts the migration and intersperses the historical sequences among the current day talking heads. We meet all sorts of characters, sons of tribal chief Haji Rahman Qul, peasants with great eccentricities, and young kids who want to learn computer and technical skills in Istanbul rather than herd sheep, goats and yak. And we learn all the uses for a dead sheep. Hopkins also admitted one man came up with 62 uses for a dead sheep but his uses weren’t as interesting. The style of 37 USES FOR A DEAD SHEEP is informal; the crew feels they are part of the story as they joke around. Reportedly some of the Pamir Kirghiz were surprised with that aspect of the film.
“So what is the point? We do gain a bit more knowledge about a small part of the world and we mange to be entertained in the process. Most of this film remains extremely forgettable in spite of a few laughs. 3 cats
“37 USES FOR A DEAD SHEEP was shown as part of the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival”