Product Description

Keanu Reeves (SPEED) and Bridget Fonda (IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU) star in this motion picture spectacular from Academy Award(R)-winning director Bernardo Bertolucci (THE LAST EMPEROR). In a big American CIty, a boy and his family (Fonda and Chris Isaak -- SILENCE OF THE LAMBS) discover a story about a prince in a land of miracles. But the miracle becomes real when Tibetan monks appear, searching for their leader's reincarnation -- who they believe has been reborn in the boy. Suddenly, their worlds meet, leading the Americans on an extraordinary adventure!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #16254 in DVD
• Brand: Disney
• Released on: 1999-08-03
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Letterboxed, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 123 minutes

Amazon.com
In many ways Little Buddha is a companion piece to Bernardo Bertolucci's The Last Emperor. A beautiful travelogue and history lesson unfolds in the two parts of this film: a historical text of Siddhartha (Keanu Reeves) and the contemporary quest of Lama Norbu (Ying Ruocheng), who believes he has found the reincarnation of his former teacher in a Seattle child. The ancient, magical tales sweep away the blasé contemporary action. Ruocheng's presence drives the story of discovery as the child learns about the teachings of Buddhism. A visual feast that will dazzle both young and old. In fact, were it not a religious icon, the youngsters might want Siddhartha dolls after viewing his magical on-screen adventures. Beautiful cinematography by Vittorio Storaro. --Doug Thomas

From The New Yorker
How the director of "The Conformist," which looks better and sharper every year, ended up making "Little Buddha," which already looks out of date, is anybody's guess. In the late sixties, Bernardo Bertolucci might have got away with this kind of thing-this gentle, wondering, trippy slice of nonsense. Now it just makes you squirm. Bridget Fonda and Chris Isaak play the parents of a young boy who may be the reincarnation of a Tibetan lama. The film therefore splits between their home town of Seattle (gray and blue, glass and steel) and the mountain stronghold of the Buddhist monks (red and orange, silk and wood). This design pattern is the backbone of the picture; there really is nothing else to it. Photographed by Vittorio Storaro, everything looks immaculate; but Bertolucci used to fill his rooms and landscapes with meaning-with political menace and dark sexual intent. Here he is offering empty chambers, dry as dust. The only fun comes in the historical flashbacks to the story of Buddha, played by Keanu Reeves, stripped to the waist: the spiritual leader as supermodel. -Anthony Lane
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

Customer Reviews

Perhaps it is simplistic, but I enjoyed it
As a traditional Jew who is often critical of films about Judaism, I can understand why some Buddhist reviewers have disparaged "Little Buddha" as overly-simplistic. For a lifelong practitioner of Buddhism, it probably is. Then again, people have to start somewhere. Those of us who seriously practice a spiritual path - whatever it may be -- tend to forget that intro level materials are just that -- basic intro. While the average Buddhist might already know the story of Buddha's life by heart, the vast majority of non-Buddhists here in the USA do not. Also keep in mind that this is a PG family film, not an historical documentary. My impression was that the film was primarily aimed at children, since the main characters is a little boy, and the story-within-the-story about Buddha's life is presented as a series of scenes in a book he (the American kid) is reading. Granted, the film does have an certain idealized, fairytale quality, but then again, so do the all those sand-and-sandals films about Jesus. Which is why I would place "Little Buddha" in the same genre. I happen to like this kind of pagentry, so I enjoyed "little Buddha" for the icongraphy that it is.

On the technical end, the cinamatography is beautiful, the costumes are superb, and the acting is well done. The story, while fictional, is based on real cases of Tibetan Lamas who have reincarnated in the West. As a companion to this film, I would recommend Vickie McKenzie's book, "Reborn in the West," which chronicles several such real-life cases. In fact, it was after reading McKenzie's book that I noticed this film and decided to view it.

Moving, touching, even inspiring beginner's story of Buddha
I have seen this movie five or six times, now, and each time I find something new and significant in it. Keanu Reeves was just fine, who says he's a horrible actor? And physically, he was totally appropriate. I loved the little kids' acting, too, and I will look at Bridget Fonda no matter what she does. This movie inspired me to continue my spiritual quest. It may be oversimplified, but a movie that's about peace and love and spirit is a great and wonderful relief from all the violence and gore and general horrible content of many of the newer movies. I too love all of Bertolucci's films, but this one touched my innermost being.

Great Movie
Little Buddha is a wonderfully entertaining and historically accurate film. The story has two plots, making it confusing at some times. One tells of a Buddhist priest searching for the reincarnation of his dead teacher, while the other tells the story of Siddhartha Guatama, the Buddha. (Played by Keanu Reeves)

As far as the acting goes, this film gets five stars from me. Siddhartha, (Reeves) is played beautifully, along with Lisa Conrad, (Bridget Fonda) and Lama Norbu. (Ruocheng Ying) Another plus about the acting are the three children who played the candidates for the reincarnation of the teacher. I especially liked Gita, who is the only girl candidate.

I liked the costumes, too, as they are historically accurate, and stand out with the bright colors and makeup. I found it strange that the men wore makeup, but they do, and the film portrays it brilliantly.

All along I have been mentioning how historically correct this film is. I have been saying this because it is the truth. Not only is the story of Siddhartha correct, but all of the facts about Buddha and Buddhism are too. If you know nothing about the religion, watching this film will give you a basic introduction to Buddhism.

There are two things that would have made this film better. If it did not flash so much between the two plots, it would have been less confusing. Also, I did not like the music. I don't know if it just was not my type or if it didn't go with the movie, but I didn't like it. Little Buddha is a grea movie and I recommend watching it, but don't waste your money on the soundtrack.