Buddha's Lost Children

This excellent documentary, filmed in the wilds of northern Thailand, tells of an extraordinary Buddhist monk, charismatic tattooed ex-boxer Khru Bah, who rescues abandoned children and teaches them how to pray, farm, and kickbox Thai-style. The boys then join their master on his patrols across hundreds of square kilometers of rugged jungle in Thailand's notorious Golden Triangle, an epicenter of the opium trade, which Khru Bah tries to combat.

Filmmaker Mark Verkerk follows this natural performer, other members of his monastery, and the wounded he helps over a period of several months. These last include a sick pony, a boy with bad eczema, another kid who barely speaks, and a very little child who can barely walk. Khru Bah helps them all in one of the most inspiring documentaries on record. He even helps an adult villager who calls him crazy and has to be put in a headlock. This is one literally kickass Buddhist monk.