Tibet: Cry of the Snow Lion. (2002)

Shortly after graduating from the University of California at Santa Barbara, filmmaker Tom Peosay and his wife Sue (an Asian Studies major) set out on a tour of Asia that culminated in an extended stay in the Chinese-occupied nation of Tibet. With that formative visit, the Peosays became actively interested in the small Himalayan nation's tempestuous history and, over the course of the next decade, made a number of return visits to document Tibet's story, as well as interview a number of its residents and higher-profile participants of the "Free Tibet" movement. Their completed documentary, entitled Tibet: Cry of the Snow Lion, encompasses a brief history of China's invasion and subsequent five decades of rule, as well as the various uprisings that have occurred over the years -- with particular emphasis on the 1987 riots. A number of high profile Hollywood actors lent their voices to this project, including Martin Sheen (who narrated the film), Tim Robbins, Susan Sarandon, and Ed Harris.

The Legend of Buddha. (2004)

Legend Of Buddha is a wonderful animated movie in Hindi. The journey of how Prince Siddharth Gautama became Buddha, The Enlightened One. The movie features spectacular animation technology to narrate the story of Buddha right from his childhood till the day he attains Nirvana. The story reflects qualities of truth, morals and sacrifice for the younger generation.

The Fountain. (2006)

Requiem for a Dream director Darren Aronofsky switches gears from drug-induced urban malaise to abstract science fiction with this time-tripping symbolic tale of a man's thousand-year quest to save the woman he loves. Moving between representational stories and images, this meditation on life and death focuses on the concept of the mythical Tree of Life that is said to bestow immortality to all who drink of its sap. In one of the film's allegorical timelines, a 16th century Spanish conquistador played by Hugh Jackman sets out to find the tree in order to save his queen (Rachel Weisz) from the Inquisition. Another conceptual story finds Jackman centuries later, struggling with mortality as a modern-day scientist desperately searching for the medical breakthrough that will save the life of his cancer-stricken wife, Izzi. The third and most abstract concept finds Jackman as a different incarnation of the same character-idea, this time questing for eternal life within the confines of a floating sphere transporting the aged Tree of Life through the depths of space. Even more avant-garde than his breakthrough film Pi, The Fountain finds Aronofsky almost completely abandoning conventional story structure in favor of something more cinematically abstract. Though the film was originally slapped with an R by the MPAA, Aronofsky and co. re-edited it to conform to a PG-13 rating.

Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai. (1999)

A surreal crime drama told as only Jim Jarmusch could, Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai stars Forest Whitaker as Ghost Dog, a hit man living in an unidentified but run-down city in what license plates call "The Industrialized State." Known for his gift of being able to come and go without people noticing him, Ghost Dog is a self-taught samurai who is obsessed with order and his strict personal moral code, drawn from the philosophies of the Japanese warriors. As every samurai needs a leader to whom he swears loyalty, Ghost Dog has devoted himself the service of Louie (John Tormey), a low-level crime boss who once saved his life. When Louie's superiors decide he must be executed, Ghost Dog leaps into action, methodically wiping out his many enemies. Along with a dizzying series of stylized shoot-outs, Ghost Dog also features carrier pigeons, characters who read Rashomon, a French-speaking ice cream man, and a score by RZA from the top-selling hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, who have their own well-documented obsession with Asian culture. Ghost Dog was screened in competition at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival.

Kundun. (1997)


In 1937 a two-and-a-half year old boy from a simple family in Tibet was recognized as the 14th reincarnation of the Buddha of Compassion, and destined to become the spiritual and political leader of his people. Director Martin Scorsese brings to the screen the true story of the Dalai Lama. Told through the eyes of His Holiness, "Kundun" brings to life the account of the Dalai Lama's early life, from childhood through the Chinese invasion of Tibet and his journey into exile.

Seven Years in Tibet. (1997)

Jean-Jacques Annaud (The Name of the Rose, Quest for Fire) directed this Becky Johnston adaptation of Heinrich Harrer. In 1943, an Austrian mountain climber-skier (Brad Pitt) escapes from a British internment camp in India, travels over the Himalayas, arrives in Lhasato, and becomes friends with the Dalai Lama. Filmed in Argentina, Chile, and Canada.