BOATMAN

Set entirely at Benares on the Ganges, the sacred river of the Hindu, Boatman captures the unique nature of this bizarre place, which is visited by Indians as well as tourists from all over the world. Using Benares as a microcosm, Boatman chronicles the people who live and conduct business there, observes the various rituals and ceremonies, and the tourists who flock there year after year. Every day, numerous bodies are cremated by the river's banks, or just sunk into its waters. And there are always masses of people in the river, bathing, praying, drinking the holy water. In one of the most revealing moments, a boy washes his bicycle, while next to him a beggar's body is dumped into the water, because cremation would be too expensive. (Emanuel Levy)