Loss of touch with Mother Nature

Dersu Uzala (Russian, 1975)
Director: Akira Kurusawa

First there was darkness, then there was light. This alternating of night and day was instrumental in developing many of man's inner and outer equilibrium. Internally, the diurnal circadian rhythm was achieved. Pineal gland owed its maturity upon it. Man learnt to live in symbiosis with the elements of nature by learning simple things about them. The wind, moisture, heat, stars, moon and sun were their guides. Then came the ability to produce light at their will. Suddenly, man found that they did not have depend on nature to move around. Slowly their closeness to nature grew far apart.
This Oscar winner is a poignant Japo-Russian venture that highlights a unique friendship between a Russian military surveyor and a Goldi nomadic hunter. The Goldis, or Nanai people as they are known now, have their ancestors in Manchuria.

Nanai family, Amur region of Russia

Captain Arseniev and his men meet up an amusing looking man as they survey the Far East region of Russia. The man introduces himself as Dersu Uzula, a hunter who roams the jungle for kills. They decide to take him in to help in their expedition and surveying. Not taking him too seriously on his proclaim knowledge of the forest, they were awed and pleasantly surprised with his uncanny ability to deduce things from simple observations. Looking at a track on the ground, he could tell the age, the ethnicity and many things about the owner of the footprints. His predictions eventually turned out to be embarrassingly true to the dot.
His survival skills  too proved valuable. Caught in a snowstorm, he once saved the Captain's life by building an igloo-like structure from tall grass in a jiffy. Together, Dersu and the battalion explored many areas and experienced many adventures. Dersu turned out to be someone who has utmost respect to the forest. He does not damage it for the sake of it or kill animals for fun. At one juncture, he becomes emotionally disturbed as he had to shoot down a tiger. A tiger in his belief is an animal not to be killed as it would anger the spirits.
From that time on, he was never his old self. He became withdrawn and had nightmares. He even had hysterical blindness to animals. As the expedition came to an end, Captain invited him to stay with him in his home in town.

Dersu could not really fit into the domesticated life. He eventually went back to the forest. With his failing eyesight and emotional instability, he did not survive long.
Again, Kurosawa managed to show to us that you do not have to understand the language to appreciate a good movie. The friendship between two men of different background and stature comes alive with mutual respect and acceptance of each other's conviction without malice. True friendship transcends all borders!