Burma - A Human Tragedy

Released by: Jelly Bean Films
Released on: August 14, 2012
Director: Neil Hollander
Narrated by: Anjelica Houston
Year: 2011
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The Movie:

There's not much to be said about Burma - A Human Tragedy that hasn't already been said, both in news outlets and continuing online. It is a deplorable situation that truly requires some international response and yet, like other current atrocity centers such as Darfur, only passionate documentaries seem to abound.

This film seeks to find an audience by giving voice to the many different groups in Burma that have been cruelly impacted by the military junta. Most notably, the film features Nobel Peace Prize-winner Aung San Suu Kyi speaking about what has happened and what needs to be done. Additionally, though, many political prisoners and activists are also interviewed and they're all Burmese since most (if not all) international relief organizations are barred from visits to the country.

Each person interviewed provides matter-of-fact tales of horror but each story builds the overall tension of how awful things have become in this country. The film also discusses the “why” questions around Burma's current situation, due primarily to the country's enormous wealthy resources in SE Asia (jade, gold, opium are the biggest earners) and those that would seek to recklessly exploit them for privileged profit. Clearly, none of the folks in charge are going to sit down for an interview but this film does get a unique discussion with one of the drug lords who is also quite matter-of-fact in how he lays out the way in which opium is harvested, sold, and where the profits tend to go.

Anjelica Houston narrates the film with venomous contempt and an arrogance that puts Susan Sarandon to shame. Disturbing hyperbolic comparison to The Holocaust aside it's still a useful narrative tool to help shape the outcry that the film is attempting to broadcast.

Audio/Video/Extras:

This propagand-ocumentary is presented visually in 16:9 widescreen and in Dolby Digital 2.0 audio, both of which are ample resources for this disc. Much of the footage used is from video shoots so the quality is upscaled slightly but the graininess is put on full display as well. Chinese subtitling and a scene-access menu are the only options on this disc.

The Final Word:

The suffering in Burma is immense and needs to be witnessed in order to be redressed. Burma - A Human Tragedy examines all the affected groups and states their case for humanity quite plainly. The haughty preachy tone (mostly due to narrator Anjelica Houston) can certainly be forgiven in light of the subject matter, though.