A teacher, in search of inspiration, travels to the most remote school in the world, where he ends up realizing how important his job is and appreciating the value of yak dung.
Ratings
Curator score: 7.0/10
IMDb: 7.5/10
Letterboxd: 3.69/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 98%
Metacritic: 76
TMDB: 7.4/10
Director
Pawo Choyning Dorji
Production
Dangphu Dingphu: a 3 Pigs Production, Huanxi Media
A gentle, sincere crowd-pleaser with striking Himalayan scenery and an unusually warm take on teaching, community, and purpose. It’s simple by design, but the emotional payoff and cultural specificity make it easy to recommend.
Best for
viewers who like quiet, uplifting dramas
fans of remote-setting humanist cinema
people drawn to stories about teachers and community
audiences interested in Bhutanese or lesser-seen world cinema
Skip if
you want high drama or major plot twists
you dislike slow, understated storytelling
you prefer polished, high-conflict prestige films
you need a movie with a lot of narrative complexity
Overview
Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom is the kind of film that wins you over by being humble, patient, and deeply sincere. Its premise is simple: a reluctant teacher is sent to one of the most remote schools in the world, where the landscape, the people, and the work itself gradually change him. The movie’s appeal comes from its calm rhythm and the way it treats everyday labor as something meaningful rather than mundane.
Worth noting
What lingers most is the sense of place. The film uses Bhutan’s mountains, weather, and village life not just as backdrop but as the emotional core of the story. It’s a gentle culture-clash narrative, but it never feels smug or overly sentimental; instead, it finds humor and wisdom in local knowledge, community bonds, and the practical realities of survival.
Bottom line
If you’re open to a low-key, feel-good drama with a strong humanist streak, this is absolutely worth your time. It may be predictable in outline, but its charm lies in the details, the performances, and the quiet conviction that teaching can still matter in a profound way.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Jack Moulton (3.5★) · 331 likes
The Hills Are Alive With the Sound of Yak Music
Julian (Seeking Film) (3★) · 216 likes
Let this be a lesson to all you self-proclaimed Oscar pundits out there: no matter how airtight the perceived top 5 list for International Feature may be, always expect whichever committee votes on these nominees to throw in at least one curveball to fuck with everybody! This year, I learned that lesson the hard way when perhaps the easiest slam dunk category of the year was upended with the untimely demise of Asghar Farhadi's best movie in almost a decade.… more Let this be a lesson to all you self-proclaimed Oscar pundits out there: no matter how airtight the perceived top 5 list for International Feature may be, always expect whichever committee votes on these nominees to throw in at least one curveball to fuck with everybody! This year, I learned that lesson the hard way when perhaps the easiest slam dunk category of the year was upended with the untimely demise of Asghar Farhadi's best movie in almost a decade.… more
Tabby (4.5★) · 158 likes
person: so what are your top picks for 2021 so far? promising young woman, sound of metal, judas & the black messiah? pieces of a woman? I care a lot?
me: yak film :)
Rafael "Mister Movie" Jovine (3.5★) · 116 likes
This film, which was nominated for an Oscar for Best International Film and also served as director Pawo Choyning Dorji's directorial debut, follows Ugyen, a teacher who is about to complete the fourth of his five mandatory years of training as a teacher for the government, much to his dismay as he genuinely wants to go to Australia and become a musician. However, his life will alter when the isolated place where he is sent to teach ends up transforming… more This film, which was nominated for an Oscar for Best International Film and also served as director Pawo Choyning Dorji's directorial debut, follows Ugyen, a teacher who is about to complete the fourth of his five mandatory years of training as a teacher for the government, much to his dismay as he genuinely wants to go to Australia and become a musician. However, his life will alter when the isolated place where he is sent to teach ends up transforming… more