Kundun

Watching this film reminded me of watching films like Waking Life. While visually and emotionally stunning, the pieces have to work extra hard to make up a whole. Martin Scorsese is yet again in his element, describing a cultural phenomenon in pictures, this time the life story of the Dalai Lama. And with non-actors to boot! The feel you get for life as a Tibetan monk and for the conflict between Tibet and China is unparalleled -- the making-of and tearing-down shots of mandala sand paintings, costumed religious dances, the swearing-in ceremony. Even on a tiny screen, the impact of these scenes is visceral. The "confrontation" between the Dalai Lama and Chairman Mao is almost funny, which sounds sacrilegious (and probably is). But, why do I give it a low-ish rating? Because Scorsese works so hard to present all the facts that you are left a bit adrift in how to put all the facts together. For instance, you understand the Dalai Lama's principle of non-violence, but aren't completely sure how it benefited the people of Tibet. And that's probably my main complaint about the film, that it shows us so much of the life of the Dalai Lama that we lose sight of the life of his beloved people. But, if you're up for a spectacle (although not a spectacular spectacular as in Moulin Rouge), this should not disappoint.

year: 1997
length: 128 min.
rating: 3.0
IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119485/combined