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How entertaining? ★★★★☆
Thought provoking? ★★★★☆ 17 May 2012
This article is a review of EVEN THE RAIN. |
“Yes! It’s always about money, always, ” Sebastián (Gael Garcia Bernal)
If only more films weren’t like EVEN THE RAIN. This is masterful stuff. We are given three story strands, complimenting, contrasting and enhancing each other. Packing so much into one hour 45. It is Bolivia, 2000. A casting call opens proceedings. Production has moved to Latin America to shoot a picture about Christopher Columbus. A film within a film. I love a commentary on cinema. Bernal’s Sebastián is the director, looking to save money to maximise the scale of his work. His producer is Costa (CELL 211’s Luis Tosar), who initially comes across as a bit of a douche – desiring to cut corners through exploitation and creative laziness, lacking concern for the society around him. However, the wonderful characterisation of the two leads, through Ken Loach regular writer Paul Laverty and the performances, is very human – initial impressions shift, and their responses to situations surprise and delight – delight because you’re still getting to know them and sentiment is avoided without damage to drama.
If only more films weren’t like EVEN THE RAIN. This is masterful stuff. We are given three story strands, complimenting, contrasting and enhancing each other. Packing so much into one hour 45. It is Bolivia, 2000. A casting call opens proceedings. Production has moved to Latin America to shoot a picture about Christopher Columbus. A film within a film. I love a commentary on cinema. Bernal’s Sebastián is the director, looking to save money to maximise the scale of his work. His producer is Costa (CELL 211’s Luis Tosar), who initially comes across as a bit of a douche – desiring to cut corners through exploitation and creative laziness, lacking concern for the society around him. However, the wonderful characterisation of the two leads, through Ken Loach regular writer Paul Laverty and the performances, is very human – initial impressions shift, and their responses to situations surprise and delight – delight because you’re still getting to know them and sentiment is avoided without damage to drama.
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During the shoot a crisis has hit Bolivia. Corruption and greed have caused the water to be privatised, and prices to rocket 300%. The average wage is only $2/day. So we have three compelling threads:
- A period film about Columbus and the Vatican enslaving the indigenous population.
- Artistic integrity and egos in the making of a film, the business of making a film.
- The water wars, between the people and the state.
These are juggled seamlessly and excitingly. NB/ QUANTUM OF SOLACE attempted to have a water Latin American subtext, but that movie totally fluffed it.
EVEN THE RAIN shares a technique with Laverty’s Palme D’Or winning THE WIND THAT SHAKES THE BARLEY, where characters sit around and debate. They are almost cyphers, representing ideologies. It comes off better here, because the views espoused tie in more adroitly with their personalities. Laverty doesn’t always use this method. ROUTE IRISH, AE FOND KISS and IT’S A FREE WORLD are rewarding too, but actually less dense. Though I am conscious of what he is doing with the arguments and speechifying, and it does slightly pull me out of proceedings, I still actually hope he continues to write this way – it is an efficient and not too distracting a strategy for conveying multiple philosophies.
Really well shot by director by Icíar Bollaín and cinematographer Alex Catalán, the parallels between past and present slavery are expertly and engagingly presented. It is highly likely that EVEN THE RAIN will make my top 10 best films of the year.
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