Zen for Nothing

I've practiced Zen off and on for quite a while now. I found this film to be very good , at least for me. It has long quiet stretches which I particularly appreciated. Very "Zenlike".

There have been many educational and elevating, (if not enlightening); documentaries on the subject of Zen.

Late 1960s - early 1970s. Zen as a cultural institution Mid 1970s - late 1980s. Zen as a spiritual experience Late 1980s - Mid 1990s. Zen as a discipline Late 1990s - Present. Zen as an import in West

This documentary adds not an iota of insight to any of the above evolution of the West's engagement with Zen. Instead, it pioneers a tedious and pretentious genre... Self-Cam. It's a time-zap.

There is a second or a parallel strain of consumption beyond the material kind, that defines the West's existential. It is the obsession with a narrowly defined performative rebellion, which is a masked non-rebellion. A conformity with a pretend non-conformance. The result is this waste of time. Both of the directors and the audience.

Sit in zazen instead. Infinitely entertaining. And hopefully, illuminating.

The movie tries to capture the atmosphere of daily life in a Zen monastery and does so really brilliantly. I have seen quite a few documentaries about Zen/buddhism over the years, but this is probably the best I've ever seen (for me personally). Watching it, I really got dragged into the monastery with them, and reached total peace of mind and stillness, as if I was having one of these blessed meditations where you're totally in the zone. What an impact. There is no commentator, the camera just follows the spiritual practice of a Swiss woman called Sabine Timoteo. Filmed extremely beautifully, it really is photography in motion. You could easily pick a selection of shots from the movie and have an exhibition. Of course there is no story development, the spiritual process is leading you nowhere, it takes you out of the story, that's the whole point! So if the spiritual process is just not your thing, and you expect a 'normal movie' where stuff happens, you should probably skip this one.

I couldn't finish the movie, way too slow. It was half-way through the movie, and there was pretty much zero story development until then. I'm fine with slow movies, they just have to tell something in between, either with images, emotions, music, ... I think this movie tried to do that, but, IMHO didn't achieve it.

What I liked: the zen-like Japanese voice over messages.

What a beautiful film! The photography and soundscape is just like it should be. The movie reminded me of "Into great silence" and is for sure inspired by it. Sabine Timoteo, main protagonist of the film, is always a delight to look at but her dialogue! This is the one point I don't give to the film because it made me wince a few times. Anyhow: Strongly recommended.