An example of advocacy filmmaking at its most inspired.
Comment
06/13/08
The Dhamma Brothers (2008)
82 %
Reviews Counted: 22 Fresh: 18 Rotten:4 Average Rating: 7/10
Consensus:
This thoughtful if rough hewn doc about death row inmates who discover Buddhism inspires hope that all of us are worthy of redemption.
Runtime: 76 mins
Synopsis: East meets West in the Deep South. An overcrowded maximum-security prison—the end of the line in Alabama’s correctional system—is forever changed by the influence of an ancient meditation program. Behind high security towers and a double row of barbed wire and electrical fence dwells a... [More]
Genre: Dramas
Director: Jenny Phillips, Andrew Kukura, Anne Marie Stein
Producer: Jenny Phillips, Andrew Kukura, Anne Marie Stein
Producer: Jenny Phillips, Andrew Kukura, Anne Marie Stein
Reviews
The thoughtfulness and humanity of these inmates is a potent reminder that there's almost no such thing as a lost cause.
05/16/08
Most of these men will never know freedom beyond prison walls, but they have learned liberation from within.
05/09/08
A sort of cross between The Shawshank Redemption and an episode of MSNBC's Lockup, the intriguing documentary The Dhamma Brothers makes a cogent case for prisoner rehabilitation over, as one inmate here bluntly puts it, being 'warehoused till you die'.
05/09/08
Top Critic
Though compelling as far as it goes, a little more skepticism and drama would have made for a more engaging film and enhanced its message.
05/09/08
The film does a poor job of explaining the discipline or how it works, and naively takes the convicts' testimonials at face value.
05/08/08
There's one image you're likely to take away from this mind-boggling documentary. It's of rows and rows of men dressed completely in white and seated cross-legged on royal blue mats.
05/02/08
Beyond the visual novelty of murderers and rapist sitting in silent practice, The Dhamma Brothers seems to be interested in surprisingly little.
04/15/08
If nothing else, it might change stereotypical perceptions about convicts and prison life.
04/15/08
(W)hat many will remember about this otherwise informative film is the way in which we get to know these men.
04/12/08
It's a truly inspirational piece of documentary filmmaking bolstered by a fine soundtrack featuring the music of Low, New Order and Sigur Ros.
04/11/08
Not polished enough to spread, or strike a nerve, within the wider moviegoing community.
04/11/08
The Dhamma Brothers offers a constructive alternative to the hopelessness of human warehousing.
04/11/08
Top Critic
A remarkable documentary about inmates at an Alabama prison who do a 10-day silent meditation retreat which opens them to the experience of inner peace and compassion.
04/11/08
Takes you on a thrilling and hopeful voyage through a very dark place.
04/11/08
The film, which focuses primarily on four individuals, is unusually effective at finding the humanity inside men usually reviled as monsters -- not least by themselves.
04/10/08
The film presents an intimate, compassionate and sympathetic portrait of a group of individuals that much of society has written off as savage and brutal and who reconnect to their humanity through the act of meditation.
04/09/08
Subject matter definitely trumps stylistic nuance in this solid journeyman effort.
04/08/08
Top Critic
There's no doubt that the Brothers are a compelling bunch, but their story isn't well served here.
04/08/08
Related Forums
(2008 release/Docu)-Jenny Philips' THE DHAMMA BROTHERS opens on April 11th in NYC!!!
by: ReelReviewer.com 5/8
by: ReelReviewer.com 5/8
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