Walk with Me

Zen Buddhism is a really interesting way to look at the world, and Thich Nhat Hanh is arguably one of its great teachers. But neither comes through in this well meant but pointless film.

The film fails to tell you much of anything. You don't learn who Thich Nhat Hanh is, what he's doing, where he's doing it (beyond somewhere in France), or why he's doing it. There's no history, no context. It's mostly just following a guy around, and I mean that literally, there are minutes on screen of the back of a guy's head as he walks about.

You won't learn much of anything about Zen Buddhism. The five core precepts aren't mentioned, nor the 14 mindfulness teachings. You'll have to look them up because IMDb won't let me post a link here.

You'd think that any film about Thich Nhat Hanh would at least mention what he's known for. If you think that, this film will disappoint you.

And I have to say the camera work played against what little message there was. For example, there were way, way, way too many extreme closeups, which emphasizes the individual and downplays the connections between all things that Thich Nhat Hanh teaches.

Thich Nhat Hanh and the Zen Buddhism he teaches deserve a better film than this.