The film revolves around a Buddhist monk, Lama Norbu who discovers that a 10-year-old American boy, Jesse (Alex Wiesandanger) is wanted by him and is the embodiment of his spiritual teacher, Lama Dorje. Both decided to travel together to Bhutan where the three children must undergo a real test that could have super strength.
A crazily mesmerizing pop artifact that ranks alongside Herman Hesse's novel Siddhartha in terms of extreme earnestness and quasi-religious entertainment value.
Spirituality and Practice
February 13, 2002
A well-realized parable about Siddhartha, the Dalai Lama, reincarnation, and a boy's journey of discovery and death.
Although the search for enlightenment may not have much in the way of high-concept appeal, the film should satisfy adventurous moviegoers as well as the large number of adults already intrigued by eastern religions.
As beautifully photographed and intelligently-written as the movie is, it has no emotional depth or appeal, and is often as cold and clinical as its gray depiction of Seattle.
Bertolucci's celebrated burnt-orange-and-burnished-lemon look remains handsome, and the story itself still commands some interest as a pivot into daunting material.
