This unusual and intriguing prison drama combines action with a powerful social and spiritual component. “The Way” doesn’t lead viewers to a single message but weaves thoughtful ideas about life, death, power and accountability into its nonlinear story.
It opens with a discussion among prison guards about the executions they have to administer, each one grappling with the psychic wounds inflicted by such a gruesome task. Although the action happens to take place California, it could be anywhere and it’s not meant to be about any particular justice system. On death row is the inmate Jane Arcs (Eli Jane) who we see through flashbacks as a hardened street fighter with the letters spelling out “Kill" and “Shot” tattooed on her knuckles. Jane’s backstory unfolds as she is devastated by a personal loss and turns violent, killing an opponent with her bare fists in a brutal organized fight club.
In the prison yard, Jane mocks a group of inmates practicing the ancient disciple of Qi Gong led by inmate Master Xin (Joan Wong). Jane’s instinct is to taunt, provoke and battle Master Xin whose self-discipline and serenity allows her to neutralize Jane’s aggression and, eventually, to break down Jane’s defenses. Jane begins to practice Qi Gong which, Master Xin counsels, isn’t a quick fix but a path to change.
Writer/director Dastan Khalili has the confidence to include quiet scenes in a prison-set movie, particularly between the two women which is rare and welcome. Jane raises questions about the purpose of transformation for someone on death row. Master Xin, who also committed a violent crime in her past, conveys with her expressive eyes the meaning of completing a circle.
It works and by the time Jane is about to be executed she is accepting and at peace. Not so the prison guard (Kelcey Watson) who shares a painful past with Jane and who wants to free her at great personal cost. Khalili mixes up time with some trippy sequences that question who is the guard and who is the prisoner but never loses track of this original and provocative story.
