The first Kyrgyz musical tells about the life and tragedy of the Kyrgyz village, it focuses on simple young guy. Being expelled from his native village, he takes away the daughter of a local lord ("bai" in Kyrgyz language) with him, but is overtaken and beaten almost to death. He was destined to find himself and his fate, in order to reunite his people again.
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If you raise your hand against a sacred tree, you get punished. But people still cut them down. The last example was the Hinovariku cross-tree forest – one of the places where the ancient tradition of cutting crosses into trees to commemorate the deceased is still alive. Souls rest in trees, like Marju Kõivupuu beautifully says.
Taboos are known to unite peoples. Geographical distances mean nothing. Song of the Tree comes closer to us than we could expect. A poor young Kyrgyz man is in love with a daughter of a rich man. His rival is using dishonest tricks. Revenge triggers events which lead to the destruction of an old sacrificial tree and bring chaos to the village. Kirill Razgolov, the Head of Programme of the Moscow Film Festival, has already called the film sensational, primarily in the sense of the unexpected genre – Song of the Tree is a historical musical inspired by a legend a few hundred years old, made out of love towards La La Land.
This stunning film provides a good overview of Kyrgyz folk traditions and ethnography on the backdrop of the enchanting Tian Shan Mountains. It is clear that the people of this country are proud of their traditions. This is their sincere self-assertion which has not yet stepped into the post-modern era where all values are questioned. By respecting ourselves and our roots, we are able to respects others – an old truth which we tend to forget.
