Man From a Missing Land (1961)

This starts with that unique Tibetan horn sound as we see the snow clad Himalayas and some Buddhist monks at prayer. A peaceable society living the life their ancestors had done for many an age. Peppered with some illustrations, of statues, of their dances, festivals and interviews this documentary contrasts this lifestyle with the fact that they, now in 1961, live in exile in India, Bhutan and Nepal - unable to return to their isolated homeland of palaces and monasteries deep within the mountain range. Actuality depicts the October 1950 Communist Chinese invasion, their tiny militia soon overwhelmed, their ancient traditions subsumed into the Chinese state. The narration presents us with the story of the Dalai Lama's visit to Peking to meet Mao, of the assurances given before the invasion then reneged on. It illustrates the industrious nature of the Chinese state - roadbuilding, as the Tibetan people try to continue with their traditional lives before the Lama and many of his countrymen flee. It's an emotional, well constructed documentary to watch, this one. It is astonishing just how much footage still remains of this turbulent time, and it conveys a real sense of the hopelessness felt by these fleeing peoples, risking all they had, who wanted nothing more than to be left in peace - even now, when they know that they and their children might never see home again.