The Upcoming
  • Cinema & Tv
    • Movie reviews
    • Film festivals
      • Berlin
      • Tribeca
      • Sundance London
      • Cannes
      • Locarno
      • Venice
      • London
      • Toronto
    • Show reviews
  • Music
    • Live music
  • Food & Drinks
    • News & Features
    • Restaurant & bar reviews
    • Interviews & Recipes
  • Theatre
  • Art
  • Travel & Lifestyle
  • Literature
  • Fashion & Beauty
    • Accessories
    • Beauty
    • News & Features
    • Shopping & Trends
    • Tips & How-tos
    • Fashion weeks
      • London Fashion Week
      • London Fashion Week Men’s
      • New York Fashion Week
      • Milan Fashion Week
      • Paris Fashion Week
      • Haute Couture
  • Join us
    • Editorial unit
    • Our writers
    • Join the team
    • Join the mailing list
    • Support us
    • Contact us
  • Competitions
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • Instagram

  • YouTube

  • RSS

London Film Festival 2015

Celestial Camel

London Film Festival 2015: Celestial Camel | Review
12 October 2015
Sarah Button
Avatar
Sarah Button
12 October 2015

Movie and show review

Sarah Button

Celestial Camel

★★★★★

Links

FacebookWebsite

Special event

In the Kalmykian desert a camel is born under a camel-shaped cloud. The signal means this is no ordinary camel however, but a magical, special, celestial camel. But it isn’t all smooth sailing from here: the camel is bought by a film crew and taken away by force from the farm where he was raised. His mother escapes in search of her colt, leaving twelve year-old Bayir to set off on a long journey in search of the camels he helped raise. On his quest he meets friends and foes alike, but the task of retrieving two humped cattle turns out to be slightly harder than expected.

Bayir’s travels through the desert will enthral any child with a spirit of adventure. A daring escape from a prison cell is one of the highlights of the film, and there are plenty of explosions and chases to keep young viewers entertained. The pace does start to drag in places, especially during the exultations of the titular camel who has yet to prove his celestial credentials. Skeptics may lose patience with these scenes, and even doubt that he’s special at all.

However, even the most inexperienced of children will see the ending coming. It’s not hard to guess whether Bayir will succeed in retrieving his camels, so the suspense created during tense scenes misses the mark. But the likeable young boy holds the film together with his innocent determination and charming demeanour.

Despite the film’s best efforts, it is very hard to take a camel seriously. Even when imbued with mystical powers, they are not animals which take naturally to looking dramatic and formidable. Instead, these moments are comedic, and not in the way the film intended. It is a credit to the direction that the film’s flaws do not distract from the finished product: a sweet if slightly slow children’s film. Even the accidental comedy can be forgiven; who can resist laughing at a camel?

★★★★★

Sarah Button

Celestial Camel does not yet have a UK release date.

For further information about the 59th London Film Festival visit here, and for more of our coverage visit here.

Watch the trailer for Celestial Camel here:

Please accept YouTube cookies to play this video. By accepting you will be accessing content from YouTube, a service provided by an external third party.

YouTube privacy policy

If you accept this notice, your choice will be saved and the page will refresh.

Related Itemsreview

More in Film festivals

Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.

★★★★★
Matthew McMillan
Read More

“I think I’m kind of a drug addict for image and sound coming together! I’m always putting images to sound and getting high”: An interview with Hlynur Pálmason, director of Godland

Selina Sondermann
Read More

Watcher

★★★★★
Matthew McMillan
Read More

Resurrection

★★★★★
Matthew McMillan
Read More

Sharp Stick

★★★★★
Matthew McMillan
Read More

Leyla’s Brothers: An interview with Saeed Roustayi

Selina Sondermann
Read More

Plan 75: An interview with director Chie Hayakawa

Selina Sondermann
Read More

Falcon Lake: An interview with director Charlotte Le Bon

Selina Sondermann
Read More

“How to make a genuine portrait of life”: An interview with the stars of Leila’s Brothers

Selina Sondermann
Read More
Scroll for more
Tap

Movie and show review

Sarah Button

Celestial Camel

★★★★★

Links

FacebookWebsite

Special event

  • Popular

  • Latest

  • TOP PICKS

  • Ed Sheeran at Wembley Stadium
    ★★★★★
    Live music
  • Eagles bring a nostalgia-laden evening to the BST Festival in Hyde Park
    ★★★★★
    Live music
  • Africa Fashion at the V&A
    ★★★★★
    Art
  • “He used to spit at the audience, roll on the ground, he did, in fact, hump that plastic dog – he was the original punk rocker”: Baz Luhrman, Tom Hanks, Austin Butler, Olivia DeJonge and Alton Mason on Elvis
    Cinema & Tv
  • The Princess
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
  • Eric Ravilious: Drawn to War
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
  • Beauty and the Beast: The Musical at London Palladium
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • The Terminal List
    ★★★★★
    amazon
  • Baymax!
    ★★★★★
    disney
  • St Vincent at the Hammersmith Apollo
    ★★★★★
    Live music
  • Beauty and the Beast: The Musical at London Palladium
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • St Vincent at the Hammersmith Apollo
    ★★★★★
    Live music
  • Netflix Walking Tour: From Bridgerton to The Crown, a free walking tour through the filming locations
    Cinema & Tv
  • Africa Fashion at the V&A
    ★★★★★
    Art
  • Minions: The Rise of Gru
    ★★★★★
    Movie review
The Upcoming
Pages
  • Contact us
  • Join mailing list
  • Join us
  • Our London food map
  • Our writers
  • Support us
  • What, when, why
With the support from:
International driving license

Copyright © 2011-2020 FL Media

London Film Festival 2015: Ayanda | Review
London Film Festival 2015: Elephant Days | Review