China / 2019 / Tibetan / 103 minutes / Color

Completing a trilogy of film that began with Tharlo (40th), Tibetan director Pema Tseden explores the clash between spiritual beliefs and pragmatism, as well as the lives of women on the Tibetan plains in the 1990s. When two kids mistake their parents’ condom for a toy, they trigger a series of events that sees two sisters face serious life-and-death choices. More grounded than Jinpa (43rd), Tseden’s dreamy take on sex, and all its untended consequences, is captured with a surprisingly playful tone. Grand Prize, Tokyo FILMeX.