JOURNEY TO THE WEST
Price: $350.00 Code: 2524 |
Directed by Tsai Ming-liang
2014, 56 minutes
Purchase: $350 | Classroom rental: $125
An immersive and transporting experience directed by Taiwanese auteur Tsai Ming-liang (Stray Dogs, Viva L'Amour), Journey to the West focuses on the figure of the Walker. A carmine-robed monk, played by Tsai’s perpetual lead actor and muse, Lee Kang-sheng, and loosely based on the life of Xuanzang, a seventh-century Buddhist monk who painstakingly traversed Asia for seventeen years in search of "the void." Moving through various landscapes, both urban and natural, with eyes downcast and palms upwards, the Walker proceeds at an excruciatingly slow, nearly imperceptible pace, his brilliant red vestments and near-stillness transfiguring the environments through which he travels.
Official Selection, Tribeca Film Festival
Official Selection, Traverse City Film Festival
Official Selection, San Diego Asian Film Festival
“A wonderfully hypnotic achievement, offering temporary respite from the perpetual acceleration of modern life and an invitation to unwind and rediscover pleasures of watching and contemplating in their purest form.” – Film Comment
"Highly Recommended. Meditative in tone and visually arresting, Journey to the West invites viewers to pause, carefully observe, and reflect on the punishing speed at which Westerners live life. It is an excellent resource for academic libraries supporting religious studies and film studies programs. A fine choice for public libraries where interest in foreign art-house films is strong." – Educational Media Reviews Online
2014, 56 minutes
Purchase: $350 | Classroom rental: $125
An immersive and transporting experience directed by Taiwanese auteur Tsai Ming-liang (Stray Dogs, Viva L'Amour), Journey to the West focuses on the figure of the Walker. A carmine-robed monk, played by Tsai’s perpetual lead actor and muse, Lee Kang-sheng, and loosely based on the life of Xuanzang, a seventh-century Buddhist monk who painstakingly traversed Asia for seventeen years in search of "the void." Moving through various landscapes, both urban and natural, with eyes downcast and palms upwards, the Walker proceeds at an excruciatingly slow, nearly imperceptible pace, his brilliant red vestments and near-stillness transfiguring the environments through which he travels.
Subjects & Collections
Festivals & Awards
Official Selection, Berlin International Film Festival - PanoramaOfficial Selection, Tribeca Film Festival
Official Selection, Traverse City Film Festival
Official Selection, San Diego Asian Film Festival
Reviews
"Liang’s ravishing conceptual film achieves a rare blend of sensuous delight and documentary specificity." – The New Yorker“A wonderfully hypnotic achievement, offering temporary respite from the perpetual acceleration of modern life and an invitation to unwind and rediscover pleasures of watching and contemplating in their purest form.” – Film Comment
"Highly Recommended. Meditative in tone and visually arresting, Journey to the West invites viewers to pause, carefully observe, and reflect on the punishing speed at which Westerners live life. It is an excellent resource for academic libraries supporting religious studies and film studies programs. A fine choice for public libraries where interest in foreign art-house films is strong." – Educational Media Reviews Online
Trailer
Related Films
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STRAY DOGS
A haunting masterpiece and possibly the last film from the great Tsai Ming-liang, Stray Dogs is a visually powerful work about a single father and his two young children trying to survive on the streets of Taipei. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival.
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