Natpwe, le festin des esprits

This black-and-white documentary will humble even the most diehard IDFA attendee. In comparison to the Natpwe festival in Myanmar, the IDFA diet of coffee and film is quite easy to digest. There, tens of thousands of people swarm to the village of the same name to adulate the nats – the spirits of the Burmese pantheon – for five long days. The filmmakers alternately show the experiences of a chance visitor – who sees mostly just chaos and madness – with the transcendence of the mediums. These are people who are in contact with another world. We see their bodies, but in spirit they are somewhere else. The noise dies away and we hear dull sounds. People scatter money around and swig from bottles of drink, and blessings are muttered. It may all seem a little threatening to outsiders, but the participants are certainly enjoying themselves. People appear to be taken over – sometimes spiritually, sometimes physically. Those who need it are cared for – a glass of water, a fanning to provide cool air – and some are held. Those whose bodies can take even more enlightenment dance. A lot remains incomprehensible, and that is exactly the point: to experience is better than to know. Every now and then the police start swinging their riot clubs, but no one – including the transvestites – seems to mind. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)