The Trader

This short doc is incredibly sad/bleak at times but also fascinating and, I think, well shot. Some lovely scenes. And some harrowing one. A trader makes his leaving trading gems for potatoes and then selling the potatoes on later on (elsewhere). Everyone just trying to get by (but in abject poverty). I thought it was great. More than worthy of less than half an hour of my time.

This documentary offers a bleak look at poverty by following a trader and his work in the small villages of the Republic of Georgia. Although one could argue the style is slow and boring, it is employed to reflects the mundane, hard and dream-crushing nature of poverty and the villagers simple existence. The directors juxtaposition of the joy and childhood and the harsh reality of adulthood in these community creates a surprising emotional depth to the short documentary format.

Naturally it will not resonate with everyone with such a simple style and subject matter, but give it 23 minutes of your time and be pleasantly surprised.

This short film, in an unpretentious way, reveals so very much about the lives of the people it portrays... both the life of the trader and the lives of the impoverished farmers/peasants who trade potatoes for the things they need and want. Lovely cinematography. Some of the lingering shots are just brilliant for the raw truth they reveal about the lifestyles and daily routines of the people. This is a flim one will watch more than once.

This is not a documentary made for a mass market. Pearl Jams songs says " I don't question our existence, I just question our modern needs." By Western standards of living, these people live in poverty and manual labor must be exhausting. While they don't have many choices, they seem to have everything they need. Are they happy? That is the main question, but the documentary is too short to answer it.

The images are as starkly beautiful as they are grim. The caucuses are one of the worlds most beautiful regions and have been economically devastated since the fall of the Soviet Union and political turmoil with its Russian neighbor. It isn't just poverty but the poverty and grim hopelessness following an economic collapse. This film evokes some of the same emotions for me as seeing a midwestern town following the closing of it's only big auto-manufacturing plant.