Jylama

This is the only movie from Kazakhstan I've ever seen, so I didn't know what to expect. The style is very stark, and reminds me of a Dogme 95 film, in particular in its non-use of music. It takes a bit to get going, and some of the scenes are too long, but like the best films of that series, in the end it cuts that much closer. The story is about a singer in Kazakhstan, born in China, who is under doctor's orders not to sing for a year. She raises her child and does simple work for the grandmother. When the child gets sick, however, she must make sacrifices to buy the medicine. The conclusion is very strong, because of restrictions the filmmaker has made until then.