After a family tragedy, Thi?n drives his motorcycle back to his village in rural Vietnam, which soon becomes a profound spiritual journey. Though Ph?m Thiên Ân’s meditative film eschews conventional narrative, it’s a gripping look at contemplation, grief and salvation.
Thi?n’s brother Tam walked away from his family years ago, and his wife has just died in a car accident, leaving behind a young boy. Driving back to his village, Thi?n encounters various people who challenge his agnostic ways, and soon his journey becomes as much a trip from one place to another as it is a soul-searching journey across the cosmos. Ph?m Thiên Ân’s film won the Camera d’Or at last year’s Cannes Film Festival.
“[B]lurs the line between surrealism and realism, faith and loss in a subdued search for purpose in the wake of a tragedy.” –Monica Castillo, RogerEbert.com