gulnazsultanova Usually I do not expect documentary movies to affect me emotionally, but this film was a good surprise. The director made a great job showing us the insights of Buddhist culture by an example of life and work of a monk called Khru Bah. Boxer in the past, Khru Bah now dedicated his life in religion and helping orphan children by taking them in the monastery and teaching Buddhist religious traditions. I especially liked the way the director focused on children's past, revealing their stories. Most of Khru Bah's followers experienced difficulties in their lives - almost everyone either lost their parents or could no longer be raised and supported by them, but the monk's work gave these children a chance for a better future. Living in the Golden Horse monastery, these children are provided with basic self-care supplies and taught to follow Buddhist customs. Sure, it was not easy for them to adjust to a new place and get along with new people, but Khru Bah and nun's patience and wiliness to help soon gained children's trust. The director provides us with a good opportunity to know what a real life in the monastery looks like. Khru Bah is an example for his pupils to follow, and his actions, his way of solving different kinds of conflicts taking place affect children's view on life, showing them the importance of compassion and support. Thus, we could say that the monastery is like a new home for all these children, and Khru Bah is playing a role of the father, even giving them new names and being strict when the situation asks for it. The setting takes place in the Golden Triangle, which is a border territory in the Northern Thailand known for drug dealing. And again here is something I did not expect to see in the movie - it is a way Khru Bah emphasises the danger of drugs and importance of avoiding them. "How can your village be strong when your bodies are weak and addicted to drugs?", he asks from the citizens of one of the villages they visit. It can be seen that people respect him as they listen to his speech and advice. And when the monk with his pupils start their day visiting villages, the citizens make contributions in the form of food and other necessary stuff, as they believe that by doing this they would improve their karma. Also as Khru Bah and his pupils often move in dangerous regions it is important for children to be able to stand for themselves, so the monk teaches them how to do boxing using his own past experience. I think that this is an important scene to point out because it contradicts the general stereotype about Buddhism being a non-violent religion. Khru Bah shows that it is possible to follow Buddhist religious traditions and develop your physical strength at the same time. And the Buddha himself demonstrated after his experiencing of asceticism that a weak body is no good for the enlightenment. So Khru Bah emphasises the importance of both body purity and strength and clear mind. So the movie was both informative and interesting, and I personally enjoyed watching it. The work of Khru Bah and nun Khun Ead is very important, in my opinion, because they not only teach young children to follow Buddhist religious traditions but most importantly provide a good example of sympathy and compassion and give these children an opportunity for a good life.

aruzhanmeirkhanova Cast: Phra Khru Bah Neua Chai Kositto, Pan Saen, Nehn Suk, Khun Ead,Pan Saen and Boontam Director: Mark VerkerkPlot: "Buddha's lost children" is a story of a wandering monk Khru Bah and his disciples traveling along the borders of Thailand aiming to rebuild a temple 100 kilometres away. The borders on the road are full of poor villages, residents of which have problems with drug addiction. A former Thai boxer Khru Bah, who found his mission in monkhood aims to help such villagers to deal with their problems. His altruism is not limited to the villagers, since he also manages to spiritually educate and bring hope to orphans and children from poor families - his disciples for new life. This spellbinding narrative about a daily life of the monk and his small community during a year-long adventure, is definitely worth dedicating time to. Review: The Dutch director Mark Verkerk rather than capturing a documentary about the Buddhism itself, focused on its narrow aspect - life of a small representative part of Buddhist sangha residing in the area of Golden Triangle in Thailand. It is worth noting that the director and his crew observed their daily activities of Khru Bah and his followers throughout a year and succeeded in portray their life in a realistic way. The documentary focuses on three young disciples of Khru Bah, each with a different story of becoming a monk. Suk was a muted child with sad eyes, who finally became exemplary for his peers and who plans to pursue monkhood in the future. Pan Saen joined Khru Bah, since his mother had no means to feed him for, but grew into a stronger child with a good concentration. Boontam, the 4-year old who had problems with his legs and barely could walk, became the youngest member of Kru Bah's community and for his great heart and happy attitudes was ascribed traits of the potential Buddha by his teacher. All of these stories are different in certain ways, but what unites them is that they all grew into stronger personalities under the mentorship of Kru Bah. The community of Khru Bah is not limited to him and his disciples. It is impossible to imagine a life of this community without a nun, Khun Ead, who is responsible for a variety of daily tasks, such as cooking and healthcare. Moreover, there is a strong interdependence between villagers and monks; since villagers earn merit once they give alms to the monks. Still, one of the episodes depicts that monks led by Kru Bah provide blankets and food for some poor villagers, standing in a long queue. This shows an altruistic component of Kru Bah's community. One might be prejudiced that the Buddhist monks behave in a very peaceful manner. The documentary reveals, however, that Khru Bah places great importance on the discipline among his surrounding and can even apply physical strength to the ones, who break the order. This applies to villagers, who wanted to fight each other in one of the scenes, and also to his disciples who are stubborn and are unwilling to follow their master's directions. Such behavior might be shaped by his past as a boxer. It should be mentioned that Thai boxing is a necessary skill for his disciples as a means of self-defense. At certain moments, Khru Bah appears as an authoritative figure, but this only emphasizes his prestige among people. This illustrates a high degree of respect for monks within a whole Buddhist community. Overall, the director and his crew made a fascinating job in showcasing life of a small Buddhist community. By demonstrating how multiple aspects of Sangha life intertwine with each other, they help a viewer to get a complete and realistic picture of the monks lives. Although, Kru Bah is far from being a usual monk, his life is an inspirational story about the strength of will, purity of intentions, mutual help and discipline.

efcarter Excellent documentary about a man, Phra Kru Ba Neua Chai, that used to be a professional Thai kick boxer, but did not find the career rewarding and became a Thai Buddhist monk instead. After a close friend of his dies he realizes his kick boxing career is not truly fulfilling so he abruptly stops his professional career and starts meditating to learn what it is he should be doing with his life. He decides on becoming a monk and opens a monastery high up in the hills along the Thai Burma border. This monastery is called Golden Horse Monastery and becomes a safe haven for orphaned boys from the surrounding villages. Many of these villages are along the route of drug smugglers so the villagers are often abused and scared into helping the drug war lords. Phra Kru Ba uses his kick boxing experience to train the boys in his orphanage to defend themselves only if needed and to help build the boys self confidence. The monastery started receiving donated horses being saved from slaughter houses, so these are used as well to teach the boys equestrian skills and how to care for another living creature. The work of this one single monk is to be commended and the film does an excellent job of telling a great story without imposing any commentary. The monk is not a traditional monk, but he clearly states he is helping the boys first, and a monk second, so a mix of skills are used to teach the boys life lessons. I am sure some Buddhist monks would cringe at some of Phra Kru Ba's techniques; however I am just as sure that they are the right techniques needed in such a tough environment. He is teaching these young boys how to be responsible and respectful, most of which came to him with zero life skills. They are learning life lessons that they would not have received if left alone in their villages. Some boys only stay a few weeks and return home while other boys stay for years. Some boys decide to become novice monks and are taught how to meditate and care for each other. Each novice is given a horse to care for and each novice is also taught how to teach the newest novice. By being assigned the task of teaching the newest novice how to train and how to care for a horse they themselves are learning they have these skills. You can see the confidence grow within these boys in a very short window of time and it is a beautiful experience to witness. The stories that unfold in this documentary are heart warming and honest. A great must see film.

cuzz333 This true story really is as the caption says: "a breathtaking true story of compassion and tough love". Even if you have no passion for Buddhism or Thailand, as one might expect you'd need to have, this film is a must see. This little community in the remote hills of Northern Thailand is not portrayed as exotic and alien, but instead brought to life with a pallet of our most familiar human emotions. Mark Verkerk follows their struggles and joys through an observational style of storytelling, allowing you to look and discover for yourself this spectacular world. In this way you are given an insight into the lives not only of the fascinating character of the Abbot Phra Kru Ba, but more importantly into the lives of the novices; the lost children of this troubled border region. You can hardly not be moved by this gorgeous portrait. These characters undoubtedly will enrich your life with their joy for life, compassion, strength, wisdom and stunning smiles.