mgoodro

This film is not for everyone. This film is for anyone who is open minded, inquisitive and not convinced they already know everything.

This film contains powerful truths; truths about human nature and the nature of human conflict, the simplicity of non-violence and the complexity of a non-violent way of life. This film contains beauty; almost indescribable beauty in the greatest of mountains and the smallest grains of colored sand, in youthful discovery and the bright eyes of a clever child. This film is poetry; the poetry of a culture that has been almost lost and a world that has been hidden away, and of a simple, brilliant man with ideas that must endure.

Understand that this film is not a primer, nor is it a definitive biography. It is art; it is one telling of a powerful story. Scorsese has a talent for powerful visuals, and he utilizes that skill to great effect. This film goes beyond the magic of Seven Years in Tibet (1997), deeper into the early life of the Dalai Lama while painting a more vivid picture of Tibetan culture and shedding more light on the Chinese `liberation' of Tibet.

Kundun is as authentic as I can imagine for a Western film about an Eastern culture.

While amazing by stage standards I had mixed feelings at the onset of this rendition. Though starting with a clever opening this film quickly finds itself mired in silliness and visual cacophony. What has been repeatedly described as production brilliance seemed at first a garish mess of opulent design and flashy costume only suited for a vaudeville production. However, the opening sequences do serve to set the stage, as it were, for the rest of the film. The music is where the real magic begins. At the onset of the first duet with Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman I was hooked for the duration. The music of this piece is clever and inventive while being almost wholly unoriginal at the same time. The songwriters have tapped into some 50 years of pop songs about `Truth, Beauty, Freedom, and above all, Love' and woven them together in powerful, evocative fashion in many cases transcending the original versions. In similar fashion to Dancer in the Dark (though no further comparison applies), the film is at its most pleasurable peak during the musical numbers.

Maybe it's a fascination with the Dalai Lama. Maybe it's the breathtaking Tibetan landscapes. Maybe it's the lively characterization of the Tibetan people. Any way you look at it, in spite of its faults this film is an engaging, intimate portrayal of a young spiritual leader in his formative years and the people of Tibet in a time of cultural metamorphosis and impending political subversion. Brad Pitt's performance as the Austrian Heinrich Harrer is commendable, if not the highlight of the film. The extroversion of his character is believable, humorous at times, at other times painful. This is a story of growth, change, evolution and upheaval on many levels; personal, spiritual, cultural and political. Though predominantly Western in perspective this film still takes a thought provoking look at Eastern thought, values and culture.