The
talk of karma and resurrection might have been unfamiliar to an Irish Catholic
like John Ford, but he could relate to the mountains and deserts of Tibet.
Indeed, this Buddhist spiritual “western” often looks like it could be
transplanted into Monument Valley without anyone losing a step. Of course, the
subplot involving two grown sons out to avenge their father would be even more
in his wheelhouse. The surprisingly compatible marriage of Western genre elements
and Eastern mysticism truly distinguishes Zhang Yang’s Soul on a String (trailer here), which screens during the 2017 New York Asian Film Festival.
Taibei
is a stone-killer, but you could also call him the man who killed the deer. In
this case, it is quite the fateful deer, because there is a sacred holy stone
lodged in its mouth. However, before Taibei can fully process this discovery,
he is felled by a bolt of lightning. Coincidentally, he is not the only Taibei
who will be killed today. In his thirst for vengeance, impulsive Guo Ri kills
the wrong Taibei, which earns his family a whole new batch of enemies,
compounding their woes exponentially.
Ironically,
it is Taibei the killer whom the lama will pull back from the Bardo. He has a mission
for the drifter that might just save his soul. He will deliver the sacred stone
to the Holy valley known as “The Buddha’s Palm.” Taibei will accept his
mission, but he is not exactly reformed yet. In fact, he might just need a bit
of ruthlessness, because he will pursued by vengeance-seekers (including but
not limited to Guo Ri) as well as a gang of cutthroats out to steal the
priceless gemstone he carries around his neck. However, he will have some help
(whether he wants it or not) from Chung, a smitten herder, and Pu, a mute
little boy who appears to have some degree of second sight.
Visually,
Soul might be the most arresting film
since maybe Fantasia or Citizen Kane. The Tibetan vistas are genuinely
breathtaking, but Zhang often uses them in ways that are pure Sergio Leone. It
is like a masterclass in widescreen composition. As an added bonus, the
narrative is also quite engrossing. After a strange prologue that only makes
sense after the very final scenes, Zhang settles into some old school spaghetti
western business. However, his narrative steadily deepens, as the characters’
karmic destinies are revealed. Frankly, it builds to some pretty amazing
revelations.
As
Taibei, Kimba slow-burns like a champion hardboiled noir anti-hero. He is all
kinds of steely and bad, but it is Quni Ciren who truly lights up the screen as
the vulnerably needy but admirably resilient Chung. Yixi Danzeng is an utter
natural as the quiet but tough Pu. Siano Dudiom Zahi is also appropriately sly
and morally ambiguous as Gedan, the mystery man shadowing Taibei and company.
It is almost a cliché to say, but in this case, it is true Tibet and Tibetan
Buddhism are also stars of Soul,
up-staging many of the nonprofessional human cast-members, but not Gedan’s
German Shepherd, General.
