Happy People: A Year in the Taiga

The documentary is following people living in the wilderness of Russia, not Soviet Union as someone had commented. Soviet Union is long gone.It is a reminder to all of us how little people need to live life in joy. I did not get an impression that people are struggling, it might seem they struggle to those who are used to the modern conveniences, which do make our lives easier, but not happier. I would not compare it to the Man vs.Wild documentary. The theme of the documentary: the purpose is life is joy, the basis of life is freedom. People are simply living in this remote part of a vast Russia and are content with their lives. This documentary is must see, a refreshing sight on the purpose of life. I would compare it to another documentary "Agafia's Taiga Life"that brings so many questions and answers about life to those who are seeking it. Sometime we just need to get away from the craziness of modern life with such documentaries to get a fresher perspective on life. It is also educational for many Americans who know very little about Russia.

This is the quality you dream discovery channel had..maybe they did years ago. We get to follow the lives of fur trappers in remote siberia. It gives insight to how we lived before the 9-5 jobs at least in scandinavia its probably the best wilderness documentary I've seen.

Its down to earth and the scenery is jawdropping. Its a hard but honest life and a lot of humanity yet still the wilderness stares back at you from the screen.

If you like documentaries with ray mears or expeditions with lars monsen this for you. Without the drama or the smugness of teaching you get to follow how they have learned to live with nature and not against it.

And its not focused with misery just because they are off grid and not part of the consumer hysteria (amazing).

Its nice for once not having to do a review to warn viewers but instead recommend it. Watch this you will not be sorry.

Saw this one a couple of years ago and was really stunned with the quality of this documentary.

Movie crew lived through a year in Bakhta, small simple village of huntsmen and fishermen in Siberia, and they have done an amazing job of showing how simple life, hard (you bet) labour and everlasting circle of life make people... pure. Happy.

There's not a hint of falseness, no pathos, no complaints. And that's probably what got to me the most: perfect documentary, no opinion imposed, just showing this life 'as is' - and the clarity of it strikes you, urban people, deep to the core.

Must see, really.

Solid and straightforward illumination of the ways in which a few fur-trappers live and work year-round in the Siberian Taiga.

Starting in Spring, we follow the stoic men on their seasonal routines in the village of Bakhtia on the Yenisei river. The utterly unique sight and sound of that big old river thawing and moving and creaking under the warm sun is totally sublime. With the onset of summer, the villagers participate in a fishing frenzy while fending off massive swarms of mosquitoes by rubbing tar all over themselves, their kids and their dogs. As autumn brings torrential rains, the water level rises and the trappers anxiously begin boating their heavy supplies into the vast forest. They begin repairing their traditional traps scattered throughout the expanse while re-constructing their personal wooden huts, which they will use as shelters along their treks through the deep snow.

Other than one hilarious moment showing an alternatively modern fishing method, most all preparations for the long and lonely winter of work in the wilderness are performed according to very old cultural traditions. The simple and skilled construction of skis, traps, canoes, and huts from natural materials is shown with a patient fascination that draws us into a culture uniquely connected to the earth.

Herzog's narration adds insight and a quirky humor to this otherwise forthright film. His patent deadpan humor -- largely deriving in his over-enunciated German accent -- and his honest admiration of these self-reliant men living off the land in total freedom from materialism and bureaucracy is refreshing, even if a bit romanticized.

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.