Another movie review from Stookie...
I watched a German movie a few months ago called "Enlightenment Guaranteed". It was about a man who practices zen who was planning a trip to a monastery in Japan for a couple months. Just as he was getting ready to leave, his brother (I think it was his brother) loses his job and his wife and hits rock-bottom. He begs to go to Japan with him, which the first guy says no at first because the 2nd guy isn't a buddhist and just wants to leave. But in the end they both go. After they get to Japan, they lose their luggage and money and are basically homeless in a strange country. They one planning the trip freaks out, but the other guy was at rock-bottom already, and it didn't bother him.
Eventually, they make it to the monastery where the buddhist has the worst, most difficult time, and the other guy excels at every task the monks give them.
I won't give away the important parts, but it was an incredible movie. A real thinker. I highly recommend it to anyone who doesn't mind subtitles (or knows German).
I bought it for my collection. It's one of those movies I that sticks with me. But I'm also a sucker for foreign films & films with spiritual/philosophical overtones.
Another good one that sticks with me is a Japanese movie called "After Life", where if follows people in a type of school after they die where they are helped to choose a moment in their life that they will live out as Heaven. It was amazing.
I'm lucky to have a video store by me with a great foreign section.
Netflix has it.