Product Description

A glorious adaptation of the classic Herman Hesse novel, "Siddhartha" was filmed by Conrad Rooks with legendary cinematographer Sven Nykvist in Northern India. Bewitched by the shimmering beauty and magic of this ancient land, they transformed Hesse's tale into widescreen poetry. A moving evocation of each person's search for the divine within, this is the story of young Brahmin who leaves his wealthy parents to become a "sadhu," a wandering ascetic. He meets and is awed by the Buddha but chooses to follow his own path, which leads him to sensual passion and material wealth. In the end he finds these pleasures empty and abandons them to find enlightenment on an entirely different plane.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #31338 in DVD
• Brand: Image Entertainment
• Released on: 2002-12-10
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English, German
• Dubbed in: Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 83 minutes

Amazon.com
Siddhartha, adapted from the famous novel by Hermann Hesse, follows the spiritual quest of Siddhartha (Shashi Kapoor), a restless young Brahmin of India who leaves home to find inner peace. The son of a wealthy family, Siddhartha first renounces his possessions and wanders the country as a pilgrim, then indulges in sexual pleasure (with lovely Simi Garewal) and material success, but none of these things gives him what he yearns for. Finally, working as a ferryman across a river, he finds a way of being that calms his spirit. What keeps Siddhartha from being a stilted Cliff Notes version of a literary classic is the gorgeous cinematography of Sven Nykvist, who has worked with Ingmar Bergman, Woody Allen, Roman Polanski, and Louis Malle, among others. His careful eye gives Siddhartha a look that transforms its philosophical searching into a visual poem. --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews

read the book first!
If you have read the book by Herman Hesse and loved it, you will most probably love this film too. It is a good attempt to transfer Hesse's philosophical treatise to screen - and any attempt at transmitting such writing is bound to fall short in some ways to some people. Some of my 'favourite bits' were cut, but overall I love the film and will be watching it again.
HOWEVER
if you have not read the book, then I recommend you read it before watching the film; otherwise it may seem disjointed.
Also, you will then realise that Siddhartha is NOT the buddha - that he was a seeker after truth, -until he gave up seeking- and would accept no other persons version of truth - not even the Buddha's (who he meets in the film). (The experience of realisation is incommunicable).
Those who 'follow' or 'belong', -Buddhists or prospective Buddhists - would do well to "follow" Siddhartha's example as even the Buddha in the Pali canon states: 'accept no teacher, follow no one, rely on your self'. Hesse's Siddhartha essentially is expounding the philosophy of Advaita, or nonduality.
I suspect this explains some of the 'misconceived' reviews below.
Picture quality: although the film was made in 1972 it has been expertly restored and whoever has done the transfer to dvd did a good job because the picture quality is better than many transfers of more recent films.
Recommended

Captivating
I first saw this movie on television in the UK in the late 1970s. I remember being non-plussed by the first thirty minutes or so of the picture but, to be honest, I was more of a fan of action TV and comedy then. As the story progressed I became more and more entranced by the tranquility of the film, I also felt as if many of the struggles the leading character was facing echoed the changes I was undergoing in my own life at that time. Were I a man of literary leaning or a devout and knowing Buddhist I may have seen the faults that other reviewers have pointed out but, as a "simpleton" in these matters, I remember finding the film to be simply and truly moving.

The spirit of the film remained with me lifelong and I felt driven to enquire if the film was to be released on DVD. I was delighted to discover that the release was imminent. While waiting I dutifuly read the book and was delighted that the story was still so familiar.

Twenty five yeas later the film does not dissapoint. Occasionaly it is a little strident in an architypal 70's way but, other than that, it remains quite enchanting and a tribute to the plaintive existence.

This Siddhartha is Not Enlightening
Since your initial desire to see this film is because you fell in love, as I did, and countless millions, with Hesse's novel, there is no need to go over the plot. Having waited for so long for this film to make it to DVD, I was immensely disappointed, even a little peeved, when I finally got to sit down and watch it. Here's why: Although the film was beautifully shot, great cinematography does not a good film make. All of the scenes are flat and utterly fail to capture even the slightest essence of what Hesse sublimely achieved in the book. As the writer of the screenplay, Conrad Rooks missed the boat entirely. For example, when Siddhartha confronts his father about striking out on his own, the scene is this quick ping-pong typ of edit between the father and son; it's over in a flash and you get no idea about the struggle or the love that either one feels. No dramatic tension, no cost, and hence no pay-off whatsoever. One of the most beautiful moments in the book is when Siddhartha meets Kamala at her palace. Again, 99.9% of the essence of the scene Hesse created is just omitted or forgotten by Rooks and the actors in his film. And the dialog that is in the script seems like it was just lifted haphazardly from the novel, without any true understanding from either the director or the actors about what it means or what's truly going on. Flat, flat, flat!Unfortunately, the film gets no help from the actors. Sashi Kapoor as Siddhartha seems lost (as the actor) and utter lifeless. And there was absolutely no chemistry between him and the actress playing Kamala. The only scene that even gets close is when Siddhartha meets the Buddha in the forest -- and the wonder of that scene is achieved from the voiceover Buddha, who you do not even see on the screen. The music in the film is very good however, but again, that is just not enough. Sadly, the weakest links in the film are the director, his screenplay, uninspiring actors and an inability to direct those actors. In the end, Conrad Rooks' Siddhartha is a major disappointment. A remake that does Hesse's book justice is long overdue, and I do not recommend it. I feel that Bertolucci's "Little Buddha" with Keanu Reeves as the historic Siddhartha (Gotama) fully achieved and captured the beauty, mystery and transcendence that is on the spiritual journey.