Alicia I love this movie so much

Ehirerapp Waste of time

AutCuddly Great movie! If you want to be entertained and have a few good laughs, see this movie. The music is also very good,

Fatma Suarez The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

D A This visually spectacular but shallow documentation of revered saint Amritananda Mayi, or Amma as she is known to millions in her native India, will probably end up as an important piece of film for her devotees, but really does not cater to those who are not already steeped in her spiritual beliefs. Detailing a brief, rare glimpse into the "hugging saint's" travels across the country, interviews and explanations take a back seat to being in the moment as Amma leads packed temples through prayer. While the strict observational tone works wonders for the atmosphere of the film and does compliment the inherent non-physical tone, the makers of this film sacrifice much with their mere visual representation. People who have not been immersed into the Amma lore, nor have a budding passion for enlightenment will only be able to take in this work as a glorified, alternative concert video of sorts, as we are basically led through a tour of temples the smiling one passes by to pray and hug with the tens of thousands of people who daily seek her unique embrace. These devotees will literally wait twenty hours to simply be hugged by this woman for a few seconds, seemingly receiving an elevated form of love, compassion, and acceptance that cannot be found in everyday life. It is this essence of embracing that is at the heart of the visual powerhouse that is this documentary. While touching and profound, the true hero of this film is undoubtedly Jan Kounen's incredible direction. What could have been a tiny niche film that does not even explore the intellectual ramifications of it's subject becomes instead one of the most visually splendid and immersed exports to come from India that I have ever seen. Making up for some of the repetitious ceremonial footage, Kounen's alternating city footage is both intimate and far reaching, giving viewers the beautifully dirty access to one of the worlds largest populations that has become glazed over in most Bollywood fare. The final result, though nothing of a conversion for the uninitiated, is still an appropriate tribute to one of the worlds most exalted spiritual leaders, and even more importantly a tribute to one of the worlds most exotic countries.

dbborroughs This is the story of Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, an Indian mystic who teaches about love and peace and helps the poor and downtrodden. Well not so so much a story but a meditation on her and her work. It is filled with some of the most beautiful photography I have seen in a long time and nicely brings us to a particular place that is alien to most of the world. The film is also painfully dull and boring.Call me unbeliever or a person with no attention span but this film had me nodding off ten minutes in. I learned nothing I didn't already know from brief TV exposes on the same woman. What am I suppose to get out of this film? That she is a nice person healing the sick and giving hope to the broken? I knew that going in. I wanted a sense of her as a human being (or since some say she is not human a reason to believe otherwise) , instead I got nice scenery and people gushing about this wonderful person who made a deep difference in their lives. Thats nice but how is that going to help me? I don't have a clue. Nothing in this film made me feel anything other than if I wanted a nap I could have saved the admission price and stayed home.Don't get me wrong I do like films that are essentially meditations, Werner Herzog's Wheel of Time springs to mind, but where Herzog engaged your spirit he also engaged your mind and made you think as well as feel. That never happened here.If you want to see some beautiful scenes of India see this movie. If you want to be enlightened spiritually or otherwise look elsewhere.

mrsdivyam I am so very upset about this. I have been an Amma devotee for years now and I have to wait months to see this film and even then I have to travel over 150 miles to get there!!! I have checked several websites and it looks like it is only playing in a scattering of theaters across the country and, interestingly, over a period of a few months. Like there is only one copy of the film or something. Whats up with that? Also, I am wondering if I will be able to get a version of this for my home. I wonder if they are going to release it on DVD. I have a few other films on Amma but they aren't big productions. I have high hopes for this one. I can only keep my fingers crossed and wait and wait and wait until September when I will finally get to view the film.

Emannuelle pradal The only thing touching and deeply moving about the film is Ama. For the rest it lacks in vision, poorly executed filming. At time it drags and often we wonder why did french director leave his extremely violent and meaningless fiction films and headed for India. Its not even soul-searching story. What is he trying to say? Why promote someone who does not believe in promotion. Approach to the character and its surrounding is bit artificial. The film does not have any real point of view. Its real pity because faith could have been a wonderful subject to explore. Maybe Pan Nalin or Kim Ki Duk would have done the justice to the subject. Why create a middleman and non-human element like film to know Ama, when she herself believes in human contact. I would advise to save your 8 Euros...