Monika’s Pensieve

{FILM DIARY}
The Tibetan Book of the Dead: A Way of Life (Canada/Japan, 1994)
Seen: Saturday, 14th November 2009 (cinema)
Runtime: 46′
Director: Barrie McLean
Production House: Mistral Films, NHK, National Film Board of Canada (NFB)
Plot: A documentary on death in the Buddhist tradition and how it differs from Western perceptions of death.
Scene From the Film

Impressions In Short
I found the [...]

Before I get to the spotting part of the post, I wanted to recommend Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired. It’s coming in on the 13th of November 2009. I saw it at the Planete Doc Review and reviewed it here. It’s even more poignant now after Polanski’s arrest in Switzerland.
{FILM SPOTTING}
The Tibetan Book of the [...]

{FILM DIARY}
Hagetaka: Road to Rebirth (Japan, 2007)
Finished Watching: Thursday, 25th June 2009
Runtime: 6 episodes (60min. each)
Director: Kentaro Horikirizono, Tsuyoshi Inoue, Keishi Ohtomo
Cast: Nao Omori, Kyohei Shibata, Ryuhei Matsuda, Chiaki Kuriyama
TV Network: NHK
Plot: A story about the mid-90s recession in Japan when Japanese companies were going bankrupt and were being bought out dirt cheap by foreign [...]

{FILM DIARY}
Osama (Afghanistan/Netherlands/Japan/Ireland/Iran, 2003)
Seen: Saturday, 11th April 2009 (DVD)
Runtime: 83′
Director: Siddiq Barmak
Cast: Marina Golbahari, Arif Herati, Zubaida Sahar
Production House: Barmak Film, Makhmalbaf Productions, Hubert Bals Fund, LeBrocquy Fraser Productions, NHK
Plot: During the Taleban regime in Afghanistan, a widow decides to dress her daughter up as a boy, so that at least one family member can [...]