"Mongolian Ping Pong": The journey begins with a little white ball
A unique, charming coming-of-age film, "Mongolian Ping Pong" unfolds in a setting as otherworldly as any fantasy. A tiny tent sits alone in an endless green field, its lushness extending to a horizon that seems an eternity away. Through the vast space, a slender river trickles, twisting and wandering through the field in a leisurely fashion. These are the remote grasslands of Mongolia, and here families quietly live their lives, without electricity or technology.
And here, one day, is where young Bilike (Hurichabilike), an impish boy of perhaps 10, finds something mysterious in the river: a small white ball, silently and majestically floating by as he scoops water in a bucket for his father. He and his two friends, Dawa (Dawa) and Erguotou (Geliban), ponder it with curiosity. Is it a glowing pearl from the gods, as Bilike's grandmother says? Or some otherworldly treasure? They try to push it down in water; it floats. What can this be?
"Mongolian Ping Pong," with Hurichabilike, Dawa, Geliban, Yidexinnaribu. Directed by Ning Hao, from a screenplay by Ning Hao, Xing Aina and Gao Jianguo. 102 minutes. Not rated; for general audiences. In Mongolian, with English subtitles. Varsity, through Thursday.
As the audience immediately knows, it's a pingpong ball, and Bilike and his friends eventually learn their treasure's identity. Though one of the boys comments that pingpong seems "too light to be a sport," they're quickly impressed by the game's status as China's national sport. Thinking the ball will be missed — it is, after all, "the national ball" — the trio sets out to Beijing to return it, not realizing how far away the city is.
All this unfolds at a leisurely pace that suits its setting; nothing seems to happen in a hurry in this green field, where delivered supplies are paid for in livestock (a high price is "at least one lamb") and bits of the 21st century, such as a rigged-up television, seem like rare curiosities.
By the end, as Bilike embarks on a new journey, we're accustomed to this movie's particular rhythms: as gentle and meandering as the flow of that river, and just as calming.
Moira Macdonald: 206-464-2725 or mmacdonald@seattletimes.com