ISLE OF WIGHT FILM FESTIVAL
QUITE apart from tackling a controversial subject matter — the Chinese presence in the Tibetan city of Lhasa and the effects of the 2008 Tibet riots — this documentary brings much more to the table than textbook controversy.
Filmed in short, illuminating bursts, Derek Smith and Isle of Wight filmmaker Joe Briscoe, narrate and present a world plagued by poverty and oppression in their film Train to Lhasa.
The audience gains a real sense of the pervasive nature of the Chinese occupation of Lhasa and through a haunting soundtrack and cleverly cut handheld footage, the film captures the intense and ever-present fear that hangs over the city and its native culture.
This inspired short — shown as part of this year’s Isle of Wight Film Festival — provided shocks and chills on both a political and emotional level for its audience and is not to be missed.
By Harry Tiley
Harry is part of a team of young writers reviewing this year's Ventnor Fringe and Isle of Wight Film Festival, as part of a collaboration with the Isle of Wight County Press.