the leading man is my tpye

Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

The movie is made so realistic it has a lot of that WoW feeling at the right moments and never tooo over the top. the suspense is done so well and the emotion is felt. Very well put together with the music and all.

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

The seasons are allegorical, the movie follows the life of a young boy on the way to manhood under the watchful eye of his Master. I found the wisdom of the Master to be guardedly accurate, EXCEPT when he made the observation to Young Adult Monk that's in my summary above. The Master's statement has the effect of making his observation inevitable for the Young Adult Monk as he sets out into the 'world of men'.Obviously, this didn't have to be. But a young man who cannot control his passions, even over the infidelity of a wife, is still accountable for his actions if they result in murder. The crime the Young Adult Monk committed is troubling within the context of the story because it seems to me he should have learned something from his Master over the years to make his life more productive. He expressed remorse as a Boy Monk when he tortured the animals with a stone. The Master taught him a valuable lesson about carrying the weight of a stone in his heart for the damage he had done to one of God's creatures.Fortunately, the Young Adult Monk was made to repay society for his crime. It would have been inappropriate for him not to face justice. But when he returns as The Adult Monk, he returns with the same heart of stone he left with, and pursues self tribulation to cleanse his heart of it's guilt. The disgraced mother who brings her out of wedlock child to The Adult Monk symbolizes the way he himself may have arrived at the floating monastery to be placed under the care of the original Master. So describes the arc of the seasons in a person's existence, though in this case, one of pain and sorrow instead of joy and fulfillment. In another more uplifting film, this would have been called the Circle of Life.To my mind, the picture would have been more fitting to convey a positive attitude with a positive outcome, but of course, life isn't often scripted that way. Considering that, the film offers an excellent cinematic experience, with the change of the seasons displayed in a vibrant array of textures and colors. This was my second viewing of the movie, and I found that it had gained greater resonance for me than the first time I watched it a number of years ago.

This is not a boring art movie. Do not skip this movie thinking it's going to go over your head, even though some of it probably will. This movie will make you think and feel, and it's not a difficult watch like some Tarkovsky film or There Will Be Blood or something like that. It's less than two hours long, it's easy to follow and it has some really profound messages.There is plenty of symbolism that requires knowledge of Buddhism to fully grasp, like the animals present in the movie, or the meaning of the ending sequence, but even without context you can appreciate the story and the characters.Kim Ki-duk's movies are great, some of them are really weird but this one just works even if you go into it totally clueless.So why is it that good? It's got it all - love, passion, crime, forgiveness, repentance. It's got a totally ripped kung fu master, a beautiful young lady totally naked, it's got a floating Buddhist temple in the middle of an idyllic valley, it's got a spell inscribed onto the floor by a cat's tail. It will leave you with questions, but it will also give you answers to questions you didn't know you even had.

Poetic and influenced by Buddhist thought, this movie is a work of art in every way.It is obviously not for everyone, as his pace, almost without spoken script, and inherent philosophy, requires open minded and introspective viewers.Filming is in line with the script. Everything happens in due time. Neither before nor after. The life cycle is shown with detachment and objectivity. The destination which has come into existence on the first day of birthing is unfolding, and it will determine our lives until we begin to be aware of our actions.Actually, the film is similar to a Buddhist story.As the Old Zen Masters said: "Do not despise the story. A lost gold coin is found by means of a penny candle; the deepest truth is found by means of a simple story."8,5

A movie astonishing in its beautiful portrayal of the nature through all the four seasons. Thought-provoking in its message of the journey of the hero: from joy and pleasure to lust, desire and anger. And finally coming full circle with redemption and contemplation.The movie is indeed universal, as it shows the circle of life and the circle of the seasons. But there are many spiritual meanings to be found if you dig deeper and recognize the Buddhist signs. It's a timeless masterpiece and a must-see film for everyone above the age of 16. It's not held back by a complex plot or difficult dialogues. It's simple, yet full of wisdom.