Pesni yuzhnykh morey

The film is about the friendship of a Russian, fair-skinned fair-haired couple and a Kazakh dark-skinned, dark-haired couple and their trust (or lack thereof) in each other (fair/dark is essential to the plot). At time a raucous comedy, it manages to make telling points on friendship, roots and family. Kyrgyz director Marat Sarulu has a light, deft touch and a sure pacing; the script (by Sarulu himself) is near perfect. There are many magical moments, some of them involving a parallel story told with shadow puppets. The action unfolds in Kazakhstan although it was actually filmed in Kyrgyzstan, in spectacular surroundings. The movie is spoken (mostly) in Russian.

By all means watch this movie. You may catch it in some festival or on cable television. There seems to be a Region 1 DVD (presumably with English subtitles) but it has not yet been picked up by the DVD/streaming rental services. Director Sarulu (educated in Kyrgyzstan and the Soviet Union) has directed four feature movies (one just completed). I have seen favorable reviews, but haven't been able to watch them.