Review of Kundun (1997) by Grant K — 13 Apr 2013

The movie takes us through the young years of the Dalai Lama (which happens to mean ocean's of wisdom) and is to be some of the most trying times in Tibetan history. In 1950, when he was only 16, the Dalai Lama was called upon to assume full political power when Tibet was threatened by the might of China. Invasion of the Chinese to, "liberate Tibet from the plague that is Buddhism," and try to convince that the people of Tibet that they need reform. The Chinese kill monks, slaughter women force the children to kill their parents and force nuns and monks to fornicate in the streets.

The Young Dalai Lama is forced to either succumb to the rein of the Chinese and denounce their religion and culture or stand and fight which is a contradiction of the teachings and beliefs of the Buddha. Even if they fight, Tibet only had 5000 solders with primitive weapons, no match for the military power of China.

Kundun (literally meaning "presence".) is the most underrated movie ever directed by Martin Scorsese. Such a powerful film that the Chinese government has since banned Scorsese and crew from ever entering Tibet again. If you watch this movie the first thing you notice is how the cinematography and the images really make the movie. The second thing you will notice is the haunting score. Many scenes have sparse dialog and are really told by the sequence of shots. Scorsese directs shot after shot in a melodic pattern to guide the viewer though the story. You know what's going on even with little or no dialog. Every shot in the movie has a purpose and is executed artistic and masterfully.

An excellent account of the true story of the fourteenth Dalai Lama and the plight of Tibet to remain a free country. This was a time after WW2 where no one wanted to get involved and no other country or government came to the aid of Tibet even after countless pleas by the Dalai Lama himself.

No big name movie stars but powerful acting. The movie is a well woven story that really opens one's eyes to the plight of a different culture. At times it might be misunderstood and look to be "dated" but at further study you see that the way of the Tibetan people was one of true honor, complete dedication to ones beliefs and sacrifice of greed and personal successes in search of enlightenment for the betterment of an entire culture, not just person gain... Living each day practicing the belief that all life is important. It's a shame that this way of life might be one that is lost to us forever and vary rarely is taken seriously by most 21st century idealist.. It's also a breath of fresh air to witness a positive religious experiences compared to today's world of so many fanatical type religious factions that have undermined laws and peoples personal freedoms. Most people today witness countless "god fearing people" contradicting their own teachings.