The Fourth Noble Truth is a romantic comedy about the choice to find freedom from suffering found in the right actions of the eightfold path.
Directed by Gary T McDonald
Produced by David Zuckerman
Starring Harry Hamlin and Kristen Kerr
The melodic chiming of a meditation bowl: It is a familiar sound for practitioners of many forms of meditation to open and/or close a session. In the feature film The Fourth Noble Truth, this sound serves as a punctuation mark as we follow the journey of the main character Aaron from destructive road rage to reluctant meditation student.
We first meet the main character Aaron, a charismatic A-list actor with anger management issues (played with humor by an engaging Harry Hamlin) when he is putting a golf club to something other than its intended use. Since the judge is a believer in the power of meditation as well as a fan of meditation instructor Rachel (played by a winning Kristen Kerr), Aaron’s lawyer convinces the actor to begin a series of sessions to at least attempt to choose mindfulness over recurring road (and other) rage. Aaron’s attitude mirrors many people’s resistance to meditation.
Part romantic comedy, part dharma talk, in The Fourth Noble Truth, Rachel offers Aaron instruction in the four noble truths and the eight-fold path. He, in turn, offers seductive charm mixed with cynicism. Does she succumb? Does he become convinced that the endgame of freedom from suffering is found in the right actions of the eightfold path: understanding, intention, speech, action, livelihood, effort, mindfulness, and concentration? You’ll have to see it. The Fourth Noble Truth is a must-see feature film that offers a fresh take on Buddhism’s noble truths and the message of the eightfold path. Collect your meditating or meditation-adjacent friends and see it now.
This engaging feature won the audience award for Best American Independent Feature at the Sonoma International Film Festival, and rightfully so. It opens in LA at the Laemmle Royal on June 5. For more info, visit: thefourthnobletruth.com
Reviewed by Felicia Tomasko, President of the Bliss Network.
Felicia Tomasko has spent more of her life practicing Yoga and Ayurveda than not. She first became introduced to the teachings through the writings of the Transcendentalists, through meditation, and using asana to cross-train for her practice of cross-country running. Between beginning her commitment to Yoga and Ayurveda and today, she earned degrees in environmental biology and anthropology and nursing, and certifications in the practice and teaching of yoga, yoga therapy, and Ayurveda while working in fields including cognitive neuroscience and plant biochemistry. Her commitment to writing is at least as long as her commitment to yoga. Working on everything related to the written word from newspapers to magazines to websites to books, Felicia has been writing and editing professionally since college. In order to feel like a teenager again, Felicia has pulled out her running shoes for regular interval sessions throughout Southern California. Since the very first issue of LA YOGA, Felicia has been part of the team and the growth and development of the Bliss Network.