Samsara (2006)
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Samsara is a movie that's all about beauty, in all aspects, deep and wide, so watch it to mainly with your spirit, as the eye is surely going to be satisfied.
This is the first Tibetan movie I've ever seen. And it blew me away. Samsara is pure art, there is not much point in discussing the cast or the story. It is a deep movie, rest assured. What may be overlooked by the western eye is actually of paramount importance in this film. Meaning a westerner could easily overlook the main character's (the monk Tashi) starting point in the story and get tangled in the love and life story that follows.
Tashi just completed a long term retreat in the Buddhist tradition, thus walking the path of enlightenment, first walked by the Gautama Buddha Himself. At this point we have a portrait of a Buddhist monk that already appears enlightened and apart from this wicked world.
It may be useful to point out right here that Samsara is the Sanskrit word describing the flow of existence in this illusory reality, life after life, during the seemingly endless cycle of reincarnations. As with many Sanskrit terms, it is hard to simply try to translate them with just one English term - they mostly need entire definitions in order to be comprehended.
So, Samsara is this inescapable flow of existence that keeps all of us here, in this plane of being. All of us, except the Perfectly Enlightened ones that attained Nirvana (Nibbana). Samsara is the river to be crossed by the aspirant to enlightenment, and Mahayana (the Tibetan Buddhism sum of doctrines) is the (Great) Vessel that can cross this river. This is the point were Tashi stands. He is a very promising Mahayana monk. This information cannot be directly found in the movie by the unaware viewer, that's why I humbly lay it here. It is required in order to understand Tashi's condition: he's not just some dude who lived in a cave for a few years, until he grew an awesome beard. He is a very devoted enlightenment seeker, in his people's tradition, to such a degree that it became his way of life, who he is.
All that follows is the result of Tashi's surrender to temptation. I'll not go into that. I will say, though, that at this point, temptation is almost mystical in form and effect, it seems to be the doorway to a complete experience of life, apparently required for enlightenment. So, throughout the movie, keep in mind that this is a story of a man on a sacred quest.
The scenery is magnificent, the characters are well played by beautiful people. The film making is awesome, and (I'll say it again), has a sort of freshness Hollywood has lost or never had. Almost every scene is a visual feast. The soundtrack is also remarkable, very in-tune with the movie, very gentle and beautiful. The fact that dialogues are spoken in Tibetan contributes a great deal to the movie's authenticity.
I cannot find a single bad thing to say about "Samsara". It is a piece of art and wisdom that I recommend you see A.S.A.P.
Possible spoilers: "Samsara" is a succession of great moments. Some of them will rest in your memory for a long time. Among them, Tashi's awakening from his long meditation by his fellow monks, the scenes revealing Pema's supreme innocence and her final anguish, the very "steamy" scene of Tashi's seduction, the utter despair near the ending. Oh, the ending... it takes great skills to end anything properly: a book, a movie, a path or a lifetime. The ending of "Samsara" stirs so many mixed feelings that it may seem that you're witnessing an actual enlightenment! The best ending "Samsara" could have got. How many movies these days fulfill that requirement? Beautiful, thoroughly beautiful.
movies • recommendations • religion
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