03/22/2011
Review by David Anthony
Global events in the early months of 2011 have caused many people to think about and give expression to what have been for some unrequited longings for democracy.The new film También La Lluvia (“Even The Rain”) by Spanish director Icíar Bollaín effectively freshly captures this radical democratic spirit. The story También details is twofold: Ostensibly it spins around the efforts of a Spanish film crew to retell the archetypal Columbus tale using Cochabamba, Bolivia, as the backdrop, and its native peoples as human props. Simultaneously, and quite surprisingly for the foreigners, the local population, on whom all filming depends, asserts itself against a rapacious, venal government, in alliance with a ruthless multinational, in order to reclaim and maintain their water rights.
Sebastián, the Spanish director of the pseudo-epic, makes agreeable noises to make it appear he is sympathetic to reconstructing the exploitative saga in the bold terms it deserves, juxtaposing the avarice and brutality of the conquistadores against the putatively “enlightened” stance of friar Bartolomé de las Casas, also reminding viewers that las Casas, albeit experiencing a change of heart regarding the harsh treatment of native folk, still acquiesced in African enslavement for a time.
Costa, heading the film unit, does not seem to care much for his surroundings, the picturesque location on which the familiar Columbian saga shall now be retold yet again with exotic Indian subjects, nor for the off-set travails of the local delineators. However, when Daniel, the principal symbol of the indigenous voice of resistance to the invaders, in his valiant portrayal of the martyred Hatuey, is himself swept up in the fierce life and death struggle to protect his people’s water, everything changes.
When push comes to shove, Costa, who we view as heartless, concerned only about the movie’s budgetary bottom line, shows himself to be the true friend of the people, by taking responsibility for Daniel and his family, even after this poses risks for him, while Sebastián, the articulate wordsmith reveling in resonant rhetoric, is revealed as the hollow shell he really is, unfeeling and ready to desert those who helped him.
También la Lluvia then juxtaposes two key exploitative plots, one historical, another contemporary, intersecting and eerily continuous. It is often difficult to distinguish between the legacy of the conqueror and the persistence of a centuries old conquest. The device of a film within a film is an effective technique to manifest these linkages.
Luis Tosar as Costa, Gael García Bernal as Sebastián, and Juan Carlos Aduviri as the fiery Daniel are riveting on screen. Paul Laverty’s concept is well-framed and boldly executed. Acclaimed actress María Icíar Bollaín Pérez-Mínguez, a veteran of 31 films in character roles, has made her directorial mark with a moving, provocative work.
También la Lluvia affords us a rare glimpse of a feature that strives to make a point that is at once complex and accessible. Take advantage of its proximity to see it now.
For the KUSP Film Gang, this is David Anthony.