Price of Gold

Although miners across the world excavate gold for corporate entities, filmmakers Sven Zellner and Chingunjav Borkhuu's artful, introspective documentary focuses on five Mongolians who do so illegally. Price of Gold follows two managers and three “ninjas” as they drill through the Gobi Desert, sifting for glimmers of gold. The five, who are by turns sympathetic and off-putting, travel with a female cook. The bosses often refer to the workers as “wankers” and call the cook "slut" (she admits that they scare her when they've been drinking)—and sometimes the recipients of the abuse let it pass, sometimes they don't. Gold-toothed Ochiroo Akh and round-bellied Usukhuu Akh, who oversee the operation, worry about theft, and keep a close eye on their employees. Says Ochiroo, “He who steals the gold gets his fingers hacked off.” They also harbor cultural misgivings about their poisoning of the ground with mercury, but—having no other prospects—they don't see an alternative. After days of finding nothing but quartz, the group turns to dynamite. Zellner, who also shot the film, gets in close as the men assemble explosives and load them into deep holes, a risky proposition. As the weeks pass, the crew slaughters a goat for food and keeps on digging. After a while, it begins to feel like Waiting for Godot, although Zellner and Borkhuu never sentimentalize the plight of their subjects, who live a tough life working for sometimes cruel and exploitative bosses. Featuring spectacular cinematography, this fascinating slice-of-life portrait of literal gold-diggers is highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)