sentences:  Like these other films, "The Horse Thief" shows Tian's fascination with China's ethnic minorities, and in particular the Buddhist ceremonies that these peoples practice.Film director Martin Scorsese listed the film (which was not widely released in foreign countries until the early 1990s) as the number one film of the decade on the television show "Roger Ebert & the Movies".Since Ebert's partner Gene Siskel was being honored that year in 1999, Ebert decidedly invited Scorsese as a special guest to share his top ten list.