The Dhamma Brothers

Subtitled “East Meets West in the Deep South,” filmmakers Jenny Phillips, Anne Marie Stein, and Andrew Kukura's inspiring documentary The Dhamma Brothers examines the extraordinary effects of meditation on hardened convicts at Donaldson Correctional Facility in Alabama, the first maximum-security prison in North America to introduce Vipassana (a physically demanding course of Buddhist meditation). Most of these men (many serving life terms for murder) would seem to be unlikely candidates for peaceful meditation, but turn out to be remarkably receptive to the 10-day instructional retreat, held in one of the prison's gymnasiums and conducted by Vipassana teachers Bruce Stewart and Jonathan Crowley. As the inmates are taught Vipassana techniques, viewers learn about the criminal background of several of the prisoners, who offer testimonials that seem so genuinely heartfelt that the skeptics (both inside and outside of the prison's walls) who doubted the program's potential are quickly silenced. What emerges from these portraits is a testament to the transformative power of self-improvement and emotional discipline, as previously violent men not only learn to check their negative impulses but also pass their newfound sense of self-control on to other prisoners. The positive results are by no means limited to the prisoners, as family members are equally joyous over the changes witnessed in their incarcerated loved ones, with the upshot being the increasingly widespread use of Vipassana teaching in prisons around the country. DVD extras include four highly informative featurettes related to meditation and its use in prison environments. An inspiring film about the potential for change in even the most seemingly incorrigible of human beings, this is highly recommended. Aud: C, P. (J. Shannon)