That was one majestic cat.
There are some surreal moments of communicating with the beast that lead me to think there is some deeper spiritual meaning here about harmony and communing with nature and probably Buddhist teachings. There is some wonky CGI but honestly I didn't mind it that much, it's clear that some of it is plain surreal and the stuff of dreams. I doubt a leopard could carry a full grown man on its back, even if it wanted to. But the monk's relationship with this particular beast and the scene at the end when it feels like it's apologizing were very touching. I'm a sucker for cats anyway. You wouldn't catch me near the big ones, but I love watching them from a safe distance.
And I love movies set in remote rural communities. It feels, looks and sounds authentic. So I enjoyed that very much. Maybe less so how the wife is treated but it's expected of such communities sadly.
There's some subtle commentary about modern society mercilessly encroaching on these people's lives and the Chinese erasing Tibetan customs and identity, but at the same time watching them marvel at a video on a laptop and getting giddy over cake, so you know, win some, lose some...
