Documentarian Otto Bell’s titular huntress — a 13-year-old Kazakh named Aisholpan who hails from a family boasting generations of champion (male) eagle hunters — is impossible not to like and/or root for. She’s cheerful, natural, diligent, sweet, and full of dreams about following in her father’s footsteps. So Dad consults with Grandpa and then helps his daughter to capture and train her own eagle in preparation for competition. If Bell had stuck with that story, we might know more about how Dad found that secluded eagle’s nest, or how Aisholpan managed to excel the way she did, or what makes one eagle or hunter better than another. Something fascinating to go along with the breathtaking landscapes and thrilling avian action. But then there might not have been time for the girl-power narrative, featuring tut-tutting old-timers running through the standard traditional objections: girls aren’t strong enough, girls belong at home, it’s always been men, etc. (Not that these grumps present any real obstacles: our heroine registers at the contest with nary a bleat raised in protest.) And what good is personal triumph unless it’s also a political one? In Kazakh with English subtitles. (2016) — Matthew Lickona
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