X
- 2012
- Not Rated
- Kino Lorber
- 1 h 24 m
- 2012
- Not Rated
- Kino Lorber
- 1 h 24 m
Summary A provocative social experiment-turned-documentary, Kumare follows American filmmaker Vikram Gandhi as he transforms himself into a wise Indian guru, hoping to prove the absurdity of blind faith. Instead, he finds himself forging profound connections with people from all walks of life -- and wondering if and when to reveal his true self....
Directed By: Vikram Gandhi
Written By: Eklavya Sakpal
- 2012
- Not Rated
- Kino Lorber
- 1 h 24 m
- 2012
- Not Rated
- Kino Lorber
- 1 h 24 m
Kumaré
60
7.2
Where to Watch
Summary A provocative social experiment-turned-documentary, Kumare follows American filmmaker Vikram Gandhi as he transforms himself into a wise Indian guru, hoping to prove the absurdity of blind faith. Instead, he finds himself forging profound connections with people from all walks of life -- and wondering if and when to reveal his true self....
Directed By: Vikram Gandhi
Written By: Eklavya Sakpal
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 12 Critic Reviews
60
50% Positive
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
42% Mixed
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
8% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 12 Critic Reviews
60
50% Positive
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
42% Mixed
5 Reviews
5 Reviews
8% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
As Kumaré plays out, both Gandhi and the film become something else, something much more thoughtful and moving. It is, as he puts it, the biggest lie he has ever told and the greatest truth he has ever known.
In a sense, the deception he practices on his followers is contemptible, but in another sense, they're all in it together. The film's implication seems to be: It doesn't matter if a religion's teachings are true. What matters is if you think they are.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 12 User Ratings
7.2
67% Positive
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
17% Mixed
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
17% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 12 User Ratings
7.2
67% Positive
8 Ratings
8 Ratings
17% Mixed
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
17% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
As a fairly new atheist (and therefore more snarky about religion than I have any right or reason to be) I thought I'd get a laugh a minute out of this whole thing. But it was really sad how easily a charismatic rascal in colorful garb can start a religion. The world is too full of hurting, broken people, and the human condition is just entirely too pathetic. I'm left with a question: Did he really feel any sorrow for his deceptions and any real affection for the people he tricked, or was that an act, too? Kumaré gets a 10 from me regardless of the primary actor's true character. It's thought provoking. And I'm glad I couldn't laugh at the people who were taken in by him. They're just good people who were looking for answers in the wrong place. And who hasn't done that at one time or another, one way or another?
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One of the finest movies I have ever seen. Incredibly moving and a must for anyone who is the least bit interested in religion and spirituality. A fascinating realization of a deeply fundamental and universal truth.
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A goal of this practical program of discipline and reflection is to cultivate an inner guru so that you don't need someone like Kumaré.
Prepare to have your assumptions pitched out the window by this tense, surprisingly probing satirical documentary.
Predictably, the documentary got a rousing reception at hipster-laden SXSW; real people might find it a touch easy.
If they handed out a best actor Oscar for documentaries this year, the striking Vikram Gandhi of Kumare would be a shoo-in. His performance of a guru is so spot-on that it fools every one of his new followers into believing he's the real deal, not someone out to prove that their faith in him is nothing more than a sham.
What is offensive is how the masquerade punks these other people - and to no seeming purpose, other than to provide Gandhi with footage for this documentary.
I am not a big fan of documentaries & would not have watched this on my own (I saw it in a group i was in) but was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. From the very beginning to the ending credits I was glued to my seat! It was very smart, funny, sad & bluntly honest! I recommend this movie to anyone that enjoys controversy & who questions religion!
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If I had been a victim caught up in the true crime recorded in this film, I would sue. After a screening in Boulder Colorado, the first thing the filmmaker told the audience was "I have many good lawyers". The dude is just plain scummy. The basis of the story is the filmmaker perpetrating a real-life fraud on a handful of nice, gullible people. He knew before he started there would be no movie unless he was able to make someone look stupid. Of course he succeeds, or there would be no movie to edit, publicize, and distribute. So we get to see him spiritually **** whoever is foolish enough to trust him and his sexy smiling henchmen. And every ticket sale makes him richer for having done so. When Sascha Baron Cohen did similar stunts (e.g., Borat) his targets were a variety of bigots, and the "humor" in those films was driven by bigots being shown to be bigots, and humiliated along the way. Cohen's movies are palatable in large part because the victims themselves are dangerous to begin with. None of the victims in Kumare are bigots--they are mostly ordinary simple souls who have an appetite for harmless New Age spirituality. That is not a good enough reason to mock them. It was disgusting to watch this man toy with people's hearts and minds just to get a few cheap laughs. Just watch the yoga instructor when she learns the truth about Kumare--she is definitely not laughing and why should she, when she allowed her studio and her students to become his victims. No doubt the counter argument is that this is a cautionary tale about trusting false gurus--ok, fine, but that does not justify creating a new set of victims.
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This guy is a ****... i was there for one of the shoots--the one he did with atheists... we of course didn't buy his act and called him out on it, but of course he didn't put that into his documentary...
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Production Company
Future Bliss FIlms,
Disposable Television,
Future Bliss Films
Release Date Jun 22, 2012
Duration 1 h 24 m
Rating Not Rated
Genres
Tagline The true story of a false prophet.
Website
http://www.kumaremovie.com/
Awards
SXSW Film Festival
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
Cinema Eye Honors Awards, US
• 1 Nomination
DOC NYC
• 1 Nomination
