Filmed on the sly over three years (when director Robert H. Lieberman was working at the U.S. embassy in Burma), They Call It Myanmar presents a multifaceted look at the world’s second-most–isolated country. Offering historical background on the nation’s 50 years of government repression while capturing the dire poverty and enthusiastic religious pilgrimages of its citizens, the doc also portrays a generous and curious people, many of whom haven’t given up a longing for democracy. Only Lieberman’s intrusive, slightly arrogant onscreen presence distracts from the profile, introducing an unwanted hint of American privilege to the film’s perspective.
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