A feature length film documentary on the Mythical, Cultural, and Spiritual Foundations of Tàijíquán shot in China from Shanghai and Beijing to the magnificent Daoist mountain of Wudangshan by long-time acupuncturist and author Dennis Willmont and his son Jud. This journey unravels the Tàijí worldview by connecting it to its roots in ancient Chinese Medicine, ritual, meditation, art, and Daoism in general. It has subtitles in English, Chinese, and both and contains an extra section on deleted scenes including "Dennis on the Chinese Language" and "Teacher Cai on Tàijí and Painting."
In July 2005 Dennis spent a month in China making a movie on the Mythical, Cultural, and Spiritual
Foundations of Tàijíquán with his eldest son Jud, a filmmaker living in China
for twenty years. They toured together from the
modern cities of Shanghai, Hangzhou, Suzhou, and Beijing to the remote countryside of Chen and
Zhaobao Villages (where Taiji has been in continuous practice for over 400
years) and the magnificent and immensely significant Daoist mountain of
Wudangshan. Throughout this journey we
tried to unravel the
worldview that produced and continues to sustain this wonderful Body, Mind,
Spirit exercise by connecting it to its roots in ancient Chinese medicine,
ritual, meditation, art, and Daoism in general.
Here’s the link to the trailer we have that’s most recent: https://vimeo.com/43807139
Tàijí Movie Reviews
When my friend and Tai Chi colleague Dennis Willmont invited me over for
a viewing of the movie he’d just produced - Return to the Mountain - a Taiji Journey - I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. Dennis is a renowned is his field as
a Five Phase acupuncturist, and is the author of quite a few critically acclaimed
books. Let me say right off that there is much to be gleaned from this film. It
offers material and perspectives that you simply won’t find in other Tai Chi media. This film is a
highly personalized account tracing Dennis' journey across the span of many
decades (centuries actually) as he seeks to discern the inner meaning of Tai
Chi through a shared sojourn (with his son Jud) to the
country of Tai Chi’s origin.
One of Dennis’
own primary Tai Chi styles, and a style highlighted in much of this video, happens
to be the Wu style. However the film’s focus is less on the stylistic
techniques that characterize any one style of Tai chi and more on Tai Chi’s roots and underlying
philosophy, rendering the film’s content as applicable to a wide and inclusive
range of Tai Chi styles and interests. Throughout the film our author/producer/scholar interweaves the essential
theme of restoring humanity
as it applies to seeming diversities, including acupuncture, architecture,
music, ancient Taoist philosophy, and more, all converging into one grand
ultimate embodiment in Tai Chi as it was originally designed to be understood
and practiced. Return to the
Mountain is ostensibly a film about
Dennis Willmont’s personal journey. But it is really an exploration into how
and why Tai Chi can serve the betterment of mankind. This is a film that should
have a prominent place in any serious Tai Chi library.—Review by John
Loupos, M.S., H.S.E.
