The word Baraka means "blessing" in several languages; watching this film; the viewer is blessed with a dazzling barrage of images that transcend language. Filmed in 24 countries and set to an ever-changing global soundtrack; the movie draws some surprising connections between various peoples and the spaces they inhabit; whether that space is a lonely mountaintop or a crowded cigarette factory. Some of these attempts at connection are more successful than others: for instance; an early sequence segues between the daily devotions of Tibetan monks; Orthodox Jews; and whirling dervishes; finding more similarity among these rituals than one might expect. And there are other amazing moments; as when sped-up footage of a busy Hong Kong intersection reveals a beautiful symmetry to urban life that could only be appreciated from the perspective of film. The lack of context is occasionally frustrating--not knowing where a section was filmed; or the meaning of the ritual taking place--and some of the transitions are puzzling. However; the DVD includes a short behind-the-scenes featurette in which cinematographer Ron Fricke (Koyaanisqatsi) explains that the effect was intentional: "It's not where you are that's important; it's what's there." And what's here; in Baraka; is a whole world summed up in 104 minutes. --Larisa Lomacky Moore