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“Were these gurus real, or just full of it?” (Video)

theworsthorse — Tue, 22 May 2012 11:06:57 +0000

Looks promising:

Back story, etc, via Gawker.

Will Ferrell, Zach Galifianakis, and the Buddha

theworsthorse — Tue, 15 May 2012 20:44:31 +0000

Thanks to eagle-eyed regular contributor Sam DeWitt, and also Danny Fisher, for the heads-up about this Buddha cameo from the forthcoming comedy, The Campaign:

Trailer here.

Samsara: The movie (Update, with link to trailer)

theworsthorse — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 04:45:38 +0000

Update: The trailer for Samsara, detailed below, is now online via iTunes. Click here to watch it.

This is going to be good.

If you recall director Ron Fricke’s fantastic movie, Baraka, you’ll almost certainly want to see this, his new “guided meditation on the cycle of birth death and rebirth.” (Or, if you’ve seen Koyaanisqatsi, etc.) And if you don’t recall Baraka, you’ll want to see this AND Baraka. Here’s the story from the film’s website:

Samsara is a word that describes the ever turning wheel of life. It is a concept both intimate and vast – the perfect subject for filmmakers Ron Fricke and Mark Magidson, whose previous collaborations include Chronos and Baraka, and who, in the last 20 years, have travelled to over 58 countries together in the pursuit of unique imagery.

Samsara takes the form of a nonverbal, guided meditation that will transform viewers in countries around the world as they are swept along a journey of the soul. Through powerful images pristinely photographed in 70mm and a dynamic music score, the film illuminates the links between humanity and the rest of the nature, showing how our life cycle mirrors the rhythm of the planet.

The film has an August 2012 general release date. Visit the website for details.

(Thanks, as always, to Sam DeWitt for the heads-up.)

So here’s the Total Recall trailer, with that big Buddha head in it

theworsthorse — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 14:47:44 +0000

Showed you this screenshot from the Total Recall remake back in September; now, here’s the trailer, for you completists.

I dunno.

Some different “Dhamma Brothers”

theworsthorse — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 11:32:51 +0000

Band names can come from anywhere, but this one was a pleasant surprise. This UK hard rock band seems to take its name from this modern documentary film championed by Buddhists and meditators for its depiction of how meditation can help the incarcerated.

Not big news, just kinda cool.

The Big, Zen Lebowski

theworsthorse — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 21:23:16 +0000

Check it out; Jeff Bridges — aka, The Dude, El Duderino, etc — will be releasing a book called The Dude and the Zen Master, which Entertainment Weekly reports will explore “the meaning of life, laughter, the movies and trying to do good in a difficult world.” His co-author? Zen teacher Bernie Glassman. This is gonna be good.

Here’s the story.

Niiice. And why not? The Dude has many Buddhist fans. Are you among them? I am.

(Hat tip to the mighty Ben Hutchison.)

Eddie Murphy, meditating. (Slow news day.)

theworsthorse — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 14:23:05 +0000

Look, it’s Eddie Murphy, meditating, in his new film, A Thousand Words. The premise sounds okay, but then again, I said that about Mike Myers’ The Love Guru when it was announced, and let’s just say things didn’t turn out that way.

Learn more about both via this Metro story about comedy and spirituality and when they do and don’t mix so well.

PS: It at least has to be better than “Rude Buddha.”

Just another post about meditating robots and the end of the world

theworsthorse — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 17:11:47 +0000

And now for something completely different: Doomsday Book is a forthcoming Korean sci-fi/thriller film which, among other things, includes the story of a sentient robot who, on the poster asks, “On the last day of Earth, shall I be saved?” According to Beyond Hollywood, the robot “works at a temple, [and] finds enlightenment. A robot repair man named Park Do-Won (Kim Kang-Woo) and a Bodhisattva Hye-Joo (Kim Gyu-Ri) then try to protect the robot from the robot company.”

After the jump: the film’s loud, action-packed trailer.

Beyond Hollywood says the film will be released next month. I’ll probably give it a rental. What about you? (Thanks to my friend Sam DeWitt for the heads-up!)

Was Sleeping Beauty meditating during her nude scenes?

theworsthorse — Thu, 12 May 2011 18:50:37 +0000

Sleeping Beauty actress Emily Browning has told CBS News Entertainment that she dealt with possible discomfort while filming nude scenes for that film via the practice of meditation. Her words:

“I taught myself to meditate in those scenes. I wasn’t present in those scenes at all, so they didn’t really have as much effect on me.”

Here’s that story.

That’s cool that she found a way to deal, but does that sound like meditation to you? She may not have been sleeping, but she doesn’t seem to have really been awake, either.

Jerry Granelli rules. (Drummers, musicians, music fans, meditators: watch this film!)

theworsthorse — Fri, 06 May 2011 01:12:12 +0000

So I live in Halifax, Nova Scotia now. There are many things to love about the place, but I think I really understood I could love it here when I visited in September and got to see the legendary drummer Jerry Granelli play a solo show. It rocked my world, and I knew that any place that could sustain someone like him would surely have plenty to offer little old me.

Happily, there’s a great documentary film that does a much better job of showing who Granelli is — and what his contributions to both dharma and music are — than I ever could. I found it online and hope you’ll watch it. Here it is, in six installments. Enjoy.

Jerry Granelli: In the Moment, Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3:

Part 4:

Part 5:

Part 6: