The Little Buddha Flashcards
What does the film focus on?
A Tibetan Monk, Lama Norbu, who is searching for the reincarnation of his teacher in three young children
What do Tibetan Buddhists believe in?
Bodhisattvas
Who does the film tell the story of?
Siddhartha
How do they show the story of Siddhartha in a positive, effective way to the audience?
They use a story book which the young child Jesse reads in the form of flashbacks
What key quotation is used to teach the meaning of reincarnation to Jesse’s father?
“Tea moves from one container to another but is still tea”
What teaching does the film focus mainly on?
Reincarnation and enlightenment which is a valued tradition in Buddhism
How do the filmmakers display modern day society?
Stark grey, white and black colours which is a complete opposite to the flashbacks of Siddhartha’s time
What does the difference in colours and music show about both the flashbacks and modern society?
The opposites are used to show the importance of Siddhartha’s time and the harshness that comes from ignorance in modern society
What sights are represented?
The four sights Siddhartha went through in order to become the Holy teacher as prophesised
What was destroyed in order to show a key teaching?
The picture made of sand was destroyed in order to show the impermanence of the world
What key teaching is reflected?
Impermanence which Siddhartha had to overcome in order to reach enlightenment
What did Siddhartha have to overcome in order to reach enlightenment?
Temptations
What do the monks show?
Traditional teachings in Buddhism as they wear traditional clothing, chant and respect the statues of the Buddha
What sound is used in the flashbacks?
Orchestral sound is used in the flashbacks to show the importance of the scenes and the beauty of the world they lived in
What sound is used for the scene of enlightenment?
Non-diegetic sound is used in the enlightenment scene to show to the importance and incredibility of overcoming such a feat
What colour is depicted in the scene to show the afterlife?
Purple is used to represent the afterlife
How are the flashbacks shown to have importance?
They have heavy use of bright, warm colours such as orange, yellow and red whilst also using orchestral sound in order to provide a sense of wonderment and awe of Siddhartha’s importance
What does Siddhartha say he needs to find?
“The answer to suffering”
What does the film deal with?
The life of a religious figure
What do the flashback scenes give Siddhartha?
Gives Siddhartha a sense if grandeur and importance
What does the enlightenment scene aim to do?
Draw the audience in and emphasise the significance of the event on both Siddhartha and Buddhism
How are major concepts of events of the Buddha’s life explained?
With clarity
What dialogue is used in the enlightenment scene?
Dialogue from Buddhist scriptures
What does the use of Buddhist scripture mean?
They are not shying away from deeper philosophical issues
What does the use of sophisticated dialogue mean?
The filmmakers can engage with adults
What is there a limited use of in modern scenes?
Non-diegetic music and lighting
What did the director use the main character for?
To teach the audience about the life of the Buddha
What does the film educate the audience on?
The life of the Buddha
What have the filmmakers selected?
The most significant scenes
