Pingue-Pongue da Mongólia

Charming, subtle, funny, evocative and interesting characters. No Hollywood here, just a simple, but touching, story told through they eyes of a people and a culture that are alien to most of us. No trite sentimentality, nor appeal to national pride, nor play on insecurities of good and evil. The film and the story progress at the right pace for the time and place they are supposed to convey. If Proust appeals to you then this film is worth watching. You don't get the sense that the actors are acting which add an authentic feel to the movie. Nothing is 'enhanced' by sound or music or special effects which perfectly fits the setting. I highly recommend this film.

I've come to believe this movie is actually genius. I have not seen a more effective story that tells of the advancement of "civilizatiion" and what that means to mankind.

it's summed up in the souvenir photo sequence of the two families.

But it's the experience of the boys that brings us to realize how sterile our world has become. Like the negative reviewer in this chain basically states: it's boring cuz nothing blows up.

In our society it has become difficult to appreciate what life can offer--what life in nature, with nature, can offer. Instead, many look to movies to escape 'what is'. This film shows us a 'what is' that transcends escapism because there is a new wonder and mystery around every bend. But not the wonder and mystery of another world: the wonder of this world. And that is how we were meant to live. Instead, the movie holds a mirror up to what has happened. Why should a Steppes father keep fighting for his TV signal? Why does he trade for worthless electronic gizmos?

I found the ending profoundly sad. Sad for the boys, but moreso, sad for us. Us who live in this world of our making and cannot grasp anything beyond the literate.

The negative reviewer stated he/she saw the film with a school. I hope the teachers are able to bring this story to light for our youth. For without the reverence and mystery of everyday life you have nothing left buy the circling attempt to anesthetize your daily existence with alcohol, drugs, violence, or even the companion of escapism: TV.

This movie is a slice of life taken from the Chinese Mongolian steppes where people today are still following many of the basic patterns of making a living as herdsmen as they did during the time of Ghengis Khan. The tale focuses on a young boy who finds a ping prong ball floating in the river and doesn't know what to make of it. His grandmother tells him it's a pearl from the river spirits and he tries to get it to glow. After a lack of success in getting the spirits dwelling within this mysterious pearl and after trying to get the pearl to glow, he learns that it is a ping prong ball. From a hazy TV broadcast, he learns ping prong is the National Sport, so the little plastic ball must be repatriated to Beijing. His attempt, however, creates more problems than it solves and his precious ball winds up being destroyed. The final awakening is delightful and unexpected.

All of the comments in the facing review is astoundingly vacuous and completely specious. This film is rich in ethnographic images, wonderful vistas of the vast Mongolian steppes and uncluttered portraits of a people whose inner and outer beauty is simple, honest and breathtaking. I guess the uninformed reviewer was expecting something other than real art.

i don't know why anyone would trash this movie or be so crude when expressing opinions about it. i saw it yesterday as part of an international children's film festival at the wexner center in columbus, ohio. it was exactly what i expected--simple, dignified, and respectful of the viewer...letting us figure things out for ourselves, make our own meanings, and appreciate the story and characters. it didn't "spoon-feed" the audience the way many American movies would.

overall, the landscapes were beautiful, the characters were real and believable, and the story was sweet and original. i would highly recommend it for adults and children.

I can't be objective about this one, simply because I'm a sucker for movies that immerse the viewer into another cultural world, stories rich with color and atmosphere and local customs, stories sometimes told without a good deal of central plot, but with a view towards capturing the inherit beauty of a region--films such as Behind The Sun, Moolaade and Respiro.

Mongolian Ping Pong is an elementary story that will drive action fans out of the room, as nothing much seems to happen very quickly--but the patient viewer is immersed in a colorful and distinctive Mongolian culture fast disappearing as Television and Motorbikes invade the vast grassy plains; a child finds a ping-pong ball floating down the local stream and thereby hangs the tale, a simple story somewhat like a BBC Nature Video with kids involved; often very funny, sometimes puzzling, but a loving, slightly anthropological take on the way humans act when driven by an ingrained culture.