This movie is marketed as funny, noir, artsy and about zen. It very quickly ceases to be funny. It then takes too long to admit that: 1) all its pretenses at plot are leading nowhere, 2) it will give you a (zen) buddhist lesson instead and 3) it thinks this lesson is worth your attention.
A (zen) buddhist might think this is a good idea, and might go on to comment on whether this lesson was well given. To a non-buddhist, however, the movie fails to explain what it thinks is so interesting about zen to merit making a movie about it. It makes zen look like an oddly dysfunctional state of mind, perhaps a state of heightened readiness to regard anything as deeply profound.
This movie is attempting to be more than a series of zen buddhist in-jokes, but it is too drunk on those to make a good attempt. It fails to connect the Detective's problem with any real person's problem, let alone the viewer's. It rudely refuses to be comprehended ands seems to be content with making sense on its own terms. As a lesson, or sermon, the movie fails.
It can still make sense to those "in the know", and I gather that it does. However, those people tend to be the ones that can find sense in anything, so that's not a recommendation for the movie either.
I give it 3 out of 10. One because that is the minimum. One because the movie evidently did make me care enough to write this review. And one for the very last scene of the movie, which was nicely done and worth remembering. I won't recommend the full movie, but I might show this final scene to a few people.
A (zen) buddhist might think this is a good idea, and might go on to comment on whether this lesson was well given. To a non-buddhist, however, the movie fails to explain what it thinks is so interesting about zen to merit making a movie about it. It makes zen look like an oddly dysfunctional state of mind, perhaps a state of heightened readiness to regard anything as deeply profound.
This movie is attempting to be more than a series of zen buddhist in-jokes, but it is too drunk on those to make a good attempt. It fails to connect the Detective's problem with any real person's problem, let alone the viewer's. It rudely refuses to be comprehended ands seems to be content with making sense on its own terms. As a lesson, or sermon, the movie fails.
It can still make sense to those "in the know", and I gather that it does. However, those people tend to be the ones that can find sense in anything, so that's not a recommendation for the movie either.
I give it 3 out of 10. One because that is the minimum. One because the movie evidently did make me care enough to write this review. And one for the very last scene of the movie, which was nicely done and worth remembering. I won't recommend the full movie, but I might show this final scene to a few people.