A nameless 'noir' detective, still mourning the loss of his wife, investigates a mysterious death in a Buddhist temple, but his logical, left-brained crime-solving skills are useless in the intuitive, non-linear world of Zen.
Acting
Duane Sharp commits to the bit like his soul depends on it
Direction
Rosenbush somehow makes enlightenment feel like a crime scene
Writing
Koans as dialogue — infuriating and brilliant
Director
Marc Rosenbush
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Shot in 15 days on a shoestring in Los Angeles, with the temple sets built in a residential garage. The 'zen master' Kim Chan was 85 and had never acted before.
The film explicitly riffs on The Maltese Falcon and Rashomon while gently mocking Western Buddhism's commodification — it premiered at the Hollywood Film Festival in 2004, peak 'Eat Pray Love' era.
No ratings yet
Sign in to join the discussion — comments are spoiler-gated to your watch progress.
Discussion starters
US
