Happy People: A Year in the Taiga (2010)

A documentary on the indigenous people living in Bakhtia, the heart of the Siberian Taiga; some 300 villagers whose daily routines have barely changed over the last century and live according to their own values and cultural traditions.

Directors:

Dmitry Vasyukov, Werner Herzog

Writers:

Rudolph Herzog, Werner Herzog,

Stars:

Werner Herzog

1 win.

Cast

Credited cast:
Werner Herzog	...	(voice)

Storyline

In the center of the story is the life of the indigenous people of the village Bakhtia at the river Yenisei in the Siberian Taiga. The camera follows the protagonists in the village over a period of a year. The natives, whose daily routines have barely changed over the last centuries, keep living their lives according to their own cultural traditions. The expressive pictures are accompanied by original sound bites quoting the villagers.

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Plot Keywords:

taiga | village | siberia | father figure | remote location | 

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Genres:

Documentary

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Germany

Language:

English Russian

Release Date:

15 November 2012 (Germany)

Also Known As:

Gent feliç. Un any a la taigà

Filming Locations:

Siberia, Russia

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$10,481 (USA) (25 January 2013)

Gross:

$336,648 (USA) (3 May 2013)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Studio Babelsberg

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Color:

Color

User Reviews

A sincere documentary about something real

If you like Werner Herzog then this film won't disappoint. His style is simple, honest and transparent. He gives you a clear sense of the reality of what most people would perceive to be a harsh way of life in the Russian Taiga. We see humans who are connected to the cycles of nature, to the animals, the forest and to their traditions. There is a quiet wisdom and deep joy in this way of life and the film serves as a powerful contrast to virtually every other piece of media being made today. The film is like poem to a way of life that now seems like a distant dream. It is beautifully shot, with vignettes that look like they are living paintings; Russian characters from the time of Tolstoy or Dostoyevesky.