All crowned with the nine Oscars obtained with The Last Emperor (1987), Bernardo Bertolucci continued, in 1993, in the spiritual and oriental vein with Little Buddha. After the tragic fate of the last Chinese emperor from the Manchu dynasty, the Italian director delivered a large fresco retracing the life of Buddha.
Shot in Nepal, Bhutan, the Kathmandu Valley and Seattle, in the United States, the film was a great success internationally but not in Italy, Bertolucci was then at odds with his native country. More than thirty years after the release of the feature film, a restored version in 4K Ultra High Definition is offered by Rimini Éditions. A UHD + BluRay combo also includes more than an hour of enlightening supplements produced for this reissue, including memories from the film’s artistic director.
The long journey to Buddha’s enlightenment
Little Buddha is two intertwining films: the search for the reincarnation of an eminent lama and the story of Buddha’s life. Reincarnation first. Where we follow two Buddhists who left their lamasserie in Bhutan to go to Seattle. It’s a long way from their mountains topped by the Himalayas, but in the American megalopolis they think they will find the reincarnation of Lama Dorje, an important master (he taught the Dalai Lama) who died nine years ago in Seattle. A curious and mischievous little boy, 8-year-old Jesse seems to fit the monks’ criteria. Bernardo Bertolucci introduces us to the suitor’s family (the mother is amused, the father reluctant), he shows us a city light years away from the daily life of the llamas and then takes in the llamas, Jesse and his dad (played by the singer Chris Isaak ), head to a monastery in Bhutan where they will find other children, possible reincarnations of the Dorje lama.
At the same time, the director gives us a very colorful legend, that of Siddhartha Gautama (played by Keanu Reeves), the prince who wanted to know the real world. It is Jesse who recounts, using a comic strip, the discovery of pain, compassion and the long journey of his Awakening until he became Buddha.
The sets built on site, as we can learn in the supplements, are impressive. Which gives magnificent images of ceremonies to this poetic journey, treated at a child’s level, which allows you to discover the culture of the Buddhists, highlights the inner beauty of human beings and the wonder of the spectacle of nature.
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