Sweetgrass

Turns out sitting down for an hour or two watching five hundred sheep being chased around a mountainside was exactly what my life needed! The shepherd lifestyle depicted here is a million miles from my own, and the filmmakers leave ample time and space for me to contemplate that fact, and ruminate over all aspects of nature, our planet, history and the future. An impressive achievement.

Focuses on a dying way of life that emphasises the repetition and difficulty of the work undertaken by rugged men in nature with a tone that is respectful rather than reverential. While less formalist than Leviathan, which it thematically resembles, it is an aesthetically pleasing experience with several great shots, including a procession of sheep staggering down the main road of a town in block like formation, and it builds meaning through a slow but subtle accretion of audio-visual detail.

Superior ethnographic cinema documenting the end of a form of American agriculture in Montana. The DVD transfer is poor, at least on the Dogwoof disc I saw, which is very unfortunate given the location and apparent quality of the filming.

Does what it sets out to do very well. There are some beautiful shots and we get to see the ups and downs of life for both the sheep and the ranchers. The fly on the wall style is a great match for the mostly lonely existence it depicts, with most scenes going on for quite a bit but generally with at least a little thing to focus on. That said, it's still a film where much of the time is spent watching sheep grazing and running, and I much preferred the first 20 minutes on the farm.

"With rugged reverence, Sweetgrass depicts the final sheepherder drive into Montana's Beartooth mountains." - Nick Schager

A strong film--following a group of sheepherders in the Montana wilderness, with only the visuals to carry the film along. The movie does a remarkable job visually representing--in a most subtle manner--the intrusion of the modern into the old ways of life that once dominated the North American continent. For a film to do that without narration or direct suggestion outside of the visual and editing choices is an achievement. Also, the photography is regularly stunning and inventive.

Minimalist documentary, often quite beautiful

So depressing. Even moving up to Nashua and getting a nice little spread looks soul crushingly stressful. *sigh*