Milarepa.

"Whether you believe in sorcery or not, Milarepa is a magical film," writes Jennifer Merin in the New York Press. "Characters paint symbols on their soles so they can walk with the speed of wind, they cross the screen as shimmering and transparent clouds of dust, they levitate rocks, move mountains, cause thick fog that clouds the minds of those who would harm them and summon huge storms with striking displays of lightening. Even more spectacular, all of this is achieved without a big budget, CG, pyrotechnics or animatronics. The effects are stunning in their simplicity."

Updated through 9/19.

"The story of [11th century mystic] Milarepa is one of persecution, revenge and spiritual redemption, fairly standard in the inspirational biopic but hardly what we associate with Tibetan Buddhism," writes John Anderson in the Los Angeles Times. "And while the tale is told in broad-stroke acting and a soberly respectful script, the elements of the case are pure romanticism."

Update, 9/19: "There are stunning locales but not much subtlety on display in Milarepa, a straight-as-an-arrow mythical-historical telling of a mystic's early life," writes Laura Kern.

Posted by dwhudson at September 14, 2007 9:24 AM