Biutiful

Even though I have been very busy in the aesthetic field (drawing, painting, making collages as a part of my school work) I had literally no time to feed my other creative passions…those of observing art in the making of other people. However, I was fortunate to squeeze one exquisite film in between my lectures.

Seeing Javier Bardem during Oscars and hearing a lot of praise for the movie, I have finally watched Biutiful. I am a long-time fan of Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, who directed Babel, 21 Grams and, my all time favorite, Amores Perros. I had certain expectations for the set-up of the plot since Inarritu always seems to go back to his fascination with three fates of separate people coming together in one fatal accident. In Amores Perros it was, literally, a car accident. In 21 Grams it was a fatal crash as well centered around the heart transplant. So going into the movie theater on a rainy Wednesday, I expected a certain degree of familiarity with the specifics of technique. This time, however, I was surprised to see that Inarritu did not follow through on his recognized plot pattern. The fates intertwined were still there - the life of Chinese and African immigrants in Spain forever bonded with their savior and assassin in the face of Uxbal (Javier Bardem) - but the feeling attached to them as separate entities was blurred.  

Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu is a reflective director who focuses on deep internal battles of his characters. Since those battles are never of a lighthearted variety, if battles can ever be, he creates some pretty dark movies. Biutiful, I would say is beyond dark…it is darker than darkness and after a week it still haunts me with its scene of Chinese workers dead in the basement from the gas leak from defective heat generators. The film is gut-wrenchingly graphic in its representation of the universal pain showcased through a simple man trying to survive in a corrupted and indifferent world:

• Uxbal’s physical suffering from prostate cancer (graphic blood urine scene in the bathroom)
• Uxbal’s battle with his conscience (guilt for his criminal activity combined with a universal love for all the needy and debilitated)
• Uxbal’s love agony for his bipolar wife and kids who are doubtlessly fated to suffer after his death

The movie speaks of love, faith and cathartic effect of suffering on the character. The poetic symbolism is combined with raw realism in a contradictory yet naturally flowing manner. A must see! (At least to beat you out of any negative thinking because your life is never as bad as what you see in this movie…makes you want to welcome each day with a big smile and a bigger “thank you”!