Wheel of Time (2003)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Werner Herzog

Writer:

Werner Herzog (writer)

Release Date:

30 October 2003 (Germany)

Genre:

Documentary

Plot:

Wheel of Time is Werner Herzog's photographed look at the largest Buddhist ritual in Bodh Gaya, India. |

Plot Keywords:

Buddhist

Cast

Dalai Lama	...	Himself
Lama Lhundup Woeser	...	Himself
Takna Jigme Sangpo	...	Himself
Matthieu Ricard	...	Himself
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Madhurita Negi Anand	...	Himself
Tenzin Dhargye	...	Himself
Ven. Geshe	...	Himself
Werner Herzog	...	Himself (voice)
Manfred Klell	...	Himself
Chungdak D. Koren	...	Himself
Thupten Tsering Mukhimsar	...	Himself

Directed by
Werner Herzog

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Werner Herzog		writer

Produced by
Werner Herzog	....	producer
Andre Singer	....	executive producer

Cinematography by
Peter Zeitlinger

Film Editing by
Joe Bini

Production Management
Irma Strehle	....	production manager

Sound Department
Mark De Gli Antoni	....	sound editor
Martin Schinz	....	sound re-recording mixer
Eric Spitzer	....	sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Lena Herzog	....	still photographer
Werner Herzog	....	cinematographer: Tibet
Erik Söllner	....	assistant camera

Editorial Department
Nick Fraser	....	commissioning editor: BBC
Maya Hawke	....	assistant editor

Other crew
Werner Herzog	....	commentary
Monika Kostinek	....	production accountant
Silvia Vas	....	continuity (as Silvia Zeitlinger)

Production Companies

• West Park Pictures Produktion
• ARTE (co-production)
• Dario de Luca Tipota Movie Company (co-production)
• GFBW (co-production)
• Werner Herzog Filmproduktion

Distributors

• Hemispheric Pictures (2005) (USA) (theatrical)
• 518 Media (2005) (USA) (theatrical)
• Ipma (2005) (Brazil) (theatrical)
• Kinowelt Filmverleih (2003) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Ripley's Home Video (2004) (Italy) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Kalachakra (Germany) (working title)
Rad der Zeit (Germany)
Ajan pyörä (Finland) [fi]
Kalachakra - La ruota del tempo (Italy) [it]

Runtime:

81 min | USA:80 min

Country:

Germany

Language:

German | English | Tibetan

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Germany:o.Al. | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud)

Filming Locations:

Bodgaya, Bihar, India

Company:

West Park Pictures Produktion

It would be great if Herzog hadn't made it

There is something about the subject of this documentary which outweighs the documentary itself. The public spectacle of people gathering for this ceremony, the interaction between the participants, the life of all these people are very wonderful things (as all lives are, but their taking part in a Buddhist ceremony brings this out)

There was this highly revealing moment in the film though where it was mentioned that the Dalai Lama does not feel people should convert from the religion of their home culture, but despite that fact he was going to Austria to do the ceremony for a group of Austrian Buddhists. Within that statement you get the whole dilemma of a spiritual/political leader, who is forced by political situations to sell himself to Westerners who think of his and his people's lifestyle as either quaint or mysterious, not just a lived lifestyle, that people are content and happy living without thinking themselves quaint or mysterious.

If you doubt that the west has these preconceived notions about Tibet, this movie should be a good lesson. Herzog dubs segments with "world music" that seems to have been recorded in Hollywood, he makes clichéd pseudo "mysterious" statements, and continually accentuates "the difference from Westerners." One has a feeling that this is an anthropological film on a dying people, as opposed to a documentary about a living one... and I think the Tibetans deserve better than that.

If this film was made by someone who just wanted to show how this ceremony was done, and how the people at the ceremony interact with it, then it would have been truly great. Herzog's voice over track just leaves you feeling sick.