Good movie but grossly overrated

This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

I just love it! It is incredible how movie with not a single word can say so much. Scenery is magical and music follows smoothly every scene. I think that somehow everyone can interpret this documentary as they want because it's not about what you hear someone says, but what you see with your own eyes and everyone of us sees world differently. I don't want to spoil but there are truly some good explanations how world works just if you are willing to really see it. I think it was worth all five years it took to make this movie. At least, my recommendation is to watch this documentary because I think you can see the world and learn a lot in less than two hours.

Greetings from Lithuania."Samsara" (2011) is a movie like i haven't see before. To call it a movie is wonder, and to call it documentary is also a bit weird, because "Samsara" doesn't have genre label - it is life - captured of video. It contains one of the most stunning things i have ever seen. There are many, and many images that i won't shake out off my mind for a long time - this is the straight of "Samsara". On the other hand, this is a movie for those who are in a mood for something ... relaxing, meditating and even stoned. Ye, because it is difficult to watch this movie with a clear head - it works best if you want to chill with a glass of wine (bottle - recommended if you plan to see it in a one sit, and even one bottle can't be enough).Overall, "Samsara" is like a "National Geography gone mad" at the times type of experience. Music was great, but the images stunned me - I've never ever saw anything like it, and i though i have seen most of it. This is a hard "movie" to see it straightforward, therefore you have to be in a mood to witness something like "Samsara". I do understand why lot of people call it a masterpiece - if you really think of what you are seeing - it is a masterpiece. But as a movie buff i can safely say - this is one of the kind experience, but only if you are in a mood for something "like this".

Samsara picks up where filmmaker Ron Fricke left off over a decade ago with his landmark Baraka, and is arguably every bit the equal of its esteemed predecessor. Before you wonder at the apparent mismatch between this comment and my rating indulge me...Both Samsara and Baraka contain haunting imagery. In the former case, whether it be a human swirl in Mecca, the clash of modern and primitive of African tribesman staring into the camera with an AK47 in hand, or, best of all, a nightmare-inducing performance by artist Olivier De Sagazan, parts of it will stay with you for a long time. On the whole, nobody can fault the visuals, largely justifying their rare and unforgiving capture-format, not to mention the ordeal it must have been to plan this multi-continental shoot.Sadly, Fricke fails to make it all amount to something intelligent. We've already seen odes to nature in the wake of destructive industrialization, most effectively in the Fricke- lensed Reggio-Glass Qatsi films. The argument was already rather simplistic then, it is dangerously muddled now: Fricke seems very partial to the beauty of nature and tribal ritual (with a strong positive bias towards Buddhism) and dead-set against modern isolation/Western industrialism. Yet some of his finest images contradict his own values: in the aforementioned case of bushmen holding machine-guns, which part of the image is meant to horrify us? The modern weapon ravaging a "pure" culture, or the idea of humans living in such prehistoric squalor and superstition in the 20th century? And are the monumental swarm around the Kaaba or the indulgence-sponsored interiors of the Vatican meant to be celebratory or cautionary? These questions might be provocative, but then that means doing the heavy lifting for the filmmakers. It all amounts to a collection of first-rate images, each of which asks an often interesting question, edited into an often confused and immature muddle. But is it worth seeing, if only once? Absolutely.

First of all, its important to outline that Samsara is not your typical movie, at all. At first glance, this film looks more like a screensaver than a feature length film. However, this film is much more than that. Ron Fricke uses incredible precise and elegant Cinematography to capture the story behind an array of Landscapes, Environments and Characters, and the end result is simply breathtaking. This is not just a film, it is a visual masterpiece.Every scene captures something different, something spectacular. From sophisticated yet entrancing time lapses, to immersive and emotional portraits, every shot is careful and masterfully planned and preformed. Every shot is different, yet all of them fit together in some sort of massive jigsaw puzzle, which is the real beauty of this film. There is a story within Samsara, yet its not one the director is shoving down your throat. The story that arises from this film is created by the audiences own interpretation, something that many movies struggle to do today. The message drawn out of Samsara is present in every frame, yet Fricke spends just enough time on each shot to keep the audience engaged, before transitioning to another frame, another shot, another message. The soundtrack in this film is also praiseworthy. It works hand in hand with the visual element, adding more context to the film, and only serves to strengthen the mood and impact of Samsara. Its nothing to rave about on its own, but its incorporation with the rest of Samsara is definitely an honorable achievement. And thats about it, there really isn't anything else to this film, and there doesn't need to be. These two elements, the masterful cinematography and the excellent use of the soundtrack are not just the strongest features of this film, they are the only features worth mentioning, and thats not a bad thing, at all. Indeed, this film is not for everyone. If you watch this movie asking for a narrative, a plot, or anything resembling a blockbuster film, you will be left severely disappointed, and very likely bored. However, if you seek a feast for your eyes, incredible cinematography, and a visually stunning experience, then this film is exactly what you want. It will keep you entranced, excited, and wanting more. I highly recommend this film for any aspiring film-maker, lover of film, or even if you are someone who can get lost for hours in your local art gallery.