'Samsara,' essentially a globe-trotting travelogue full of striking images,lacks emotional heft.
"Samsara" - the title is a Sanskrit word that refers to the cycle of life - essentially is a globe-trotting travelogue that bounces a viewer around several countries and cultures.
The word "several" is not sugarcoating. Director Ron Fricke filmed the movie over a five-year span in 25 countries. One minute viewers might be watching with pinpoint detail the creation of a sand painting in India; the next they may be surveying the eery ruins of Hurricane Katrina.
Visually, the results often are dazzling. Fricke and his crew capture such moments as a Hawaiian volcano erupting to life with a ...