The Last Moose of Aoluguya – Gu Tao

Description

Synopsis of The Last Moose of Aoluguya

Moose, called “kandahan” by the locals, is the largest animal in the Greater Khingan mountains forest. It is beautiful, strapping and, sensitive. Besides, it is the means of transportation for the Evenki people and is regarded as a symbol of good luck and happiness. But with the ecological destruction and rampant poaching, it is hard to see a moose again. However, The Last Moose of Aoluguya is not a documentary about the moose.

What the camera really follows, is an Evenki hunter Weijia, who has moose’s lonely temperament. He feels lost after the government banned hunting. He drinks and writes poems in memory of a bygone age and the days with the moose. Weijia decides to seek for the moose’s footprints into the forest in the spring. After that, he has a brief love affair and moves to Hainan. How does the lonely hunter handle his situation in the new century? Where is the last moose? Infinite boundless, vanished beast, and the last hunter, seem to unified in front of the camera.

The Last Moose of Aoluguya is the last documentary of Gu Tao’s Evenki trilogy. The other two are Aoluguya, Aoluguya and Yuguo and His Mother.

Read our blog post to see reviews about issues reflected by this film from local audience.

Information

1 hour 38 minutes | English & Traditional Chinese subtitles | HD (1920×1080)
China | 2013
Director: Gu Tao

Awards & Film Festivals

1. Official Selection of Spectrum Programme, 2014 International Film Festival Rotterdam
2. Nomination of Golden Horse Award in Documentary Competition, 2014 Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival
3. Winner of Jury Prize in Documentary Competition, 2014 Hong Kong International Film Festival
4. Nomination of Firebird Award in Documentary Competition, 2014 Hong Kong International Film Festival
5. Winner of Grand Prix Nanook, 2014 Jean Rouch International Ethnographic Film Festival
6. Best Documentary Feature, 2013 Phoenix Video Documentary Award
7. Top 10, 2013 China Independent Film Festival

Highlight Endorsement

“An audacious and powerful visual chronicle of the fortunes of a dying breed.”
Clarence Tsui, The Hollywood Reporter

“For such an emotionally powerful documentary, The Last Moose of Aoluguya is strangely neutral.”
Sedef Hekimgil, Critics Associated

Reasons for Recommendation

1. This documentary has the rating of 9.1 on Douban and 7.6 on IMDB.
2. It takes the ecological crisis as the topic, and puts forward the reflections on ethnic group, faith, civilization, and politics.
3. The film opens your eyes to a new tribe and an interesting person with unique artistic talent you haven’t seen before.

More Info

1. The Hollywood Reporter: The Last Moose of Aoluguya (Han Da Han): Hong Kong Review
2. Made in China Journal: Losing the World: After the Moose Have Gone Away
3. Next Projection: The Crisis of the Real: New Chinese Independent Documentaries: The Last Moose of Aoluguya
4. Critics Associated: Chinese Visual Festival – The Last Moose of Aoluguya – Review
5. Mini Mini Movie: THE LAST MOOSE OF AOLUGUYA (at #CVF2015)
6. Asia Society: Documentary Q & A: ‘The Last Moose of Aoluguya’ (Complete)
7. Related blog posts