Birds of Passage * * * *
As I greatly admired Embrace of the Serpent I was very much looking forward to this film from the same director/s: Ciro Guerra and Cristina Gallego.
I'ts a good film but it is a lot more literal than "Embrace", which was almost a poem.
Nevertheless this is a drama of very high quality.
It's a tragedy in the classic sense of the word as families fall out with each other and descend into a spiral of revenge.
Not being aware of the Wayuu tribes I discovered they are a made up of people from Colombia and Venezuela but they do not identify as either, and they choose to ignore the political and geographical border that runs through their land.
They have suffered prejudice and exploitation for nearly 2000 years. Having been pushed from land to land they finally settled in an area no one else wanted. They live in the Guajira Peninsula in the most northern part of Colombia near the border of Venezuela. The landscape is barren and unattractive
This story is set in a period from the late 1960's to the 1980's. The families from the Wayuu tribes have always abided by their traditional ways. Then some Gringo's approach them with an offer to grow marijuana. The financial rewards are tempting and given their remote location they will probably be safe. Besides, the police can easily be paid off.
Set over a period of more than twenty years we see the babies become young adults who have had a life of indulgence: money without class or education - and no sense of morality as their traditional ways fade.
Soon they are fighting among themselves for the spoils of "success". Whereas they used to compensate and apologise with gifts of goats and hand made jewellery now they are swapping guns.
As their old values fade, the families start imposing insults upon each other and committing transgressions for which there can be no forgiveness. But it would be a disservice to interpret this powerful drama as a morality tale or a warning: it is more like a tale of tragic inevitability.
Whereas in Embrace of the Serpent, tradition,beliefs and superstition often took centre stage, in this film the prophecies from elder and their visions are kept in the background, which is somewhat appropriate as their absence symbolises their fading importance to these tribal families who always used to rely on such traditional folklore for direction.
I'ts a good film but it is a lot more literal than "Embrace", which was almost a poem.
Nevertheless this is a drama of very high quality.
It's a tragedy in the classic sense of the word as families fall out with each other and descend into a spiral of revenge.
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| Time for a family chat. |
They have suffered prejudice and exploitation for nearly 2000 years. Having been pushed from land to land they finally settled in an area no one else wanted. They live in the Guajira Peninsula in the most northern part of Colombia near the border of Venezuela. The landscape is barren and unattractive
This story is set in a period from the late 1960's to the 1980's. The families from the Wayuu tribes have always abided by their traditional ways. Then some Gringo's approach them with an offer to grow marijuana. The financial rewards are tempting and given their remote location they will probably be safe. Besides, the police can easily be paid off.
Set over a period of more than twenty years we see the babies become young adults who have had a life of indulgence: money without class or education - and no sense of morality as their traditional ways fade.
Soon they are fighting among themselves for the spoils of "success". Whereas they used to compensate and apologise with gifts of goats and hand made jewellery now they are swapping guns.
As their old values fade, the families start imposing insults upon each other and committing transgressions for which there can be no forgiveness. But it would be a disservice to interpret this powerful drama as a morality tale or a warning: it is more like a tale of tragic inevitability.
Whereas in Embrace of the Serpent, tradition,beliefs and superstition often took centre stage, in this film the prophecies from elder and their visions are kept in the background, which is somewhat appropriate as their absence symbolises their fading importance to these tribal families who always used to rely on such traditional folklore for direction.
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