Why watch "Bardo" - the ingenious self-criticism of Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu

On December 16, Alejandro González Iñárritu's new film Bardo premiered on Netflix.

The full title of the film is "Bardo. A false chronicle of a handful of truths. For those who don't know, Iñárritu's famous "Birdman" shot in one shot was called "Birdman, or the Unexpected Dignity of Ignorance".

But Alejandro González Iñárritu loves not only long titles, but also difficult tasks. After winning two Oscars for directing in 2015 and 2016, he took a break. Now Iñárritu decided to show what the artist thinks about, having a difficult relationship with his homeland and himself.

Iñárritu co-wrote the screenplay with Nicolás Giacobone, who worked on the films Beauty, Birdman and The Revenant. The place of the operator was taken by Darius Khonji ("Seven", "Too Old to Die Young"). The music was composed by Bryce Desner ("The Revenant", "The Two Popes").

The main role was played by Daniel Jimenez Cacho ("Memory").

Silverio is a Mexican journalist who has lived in the United States for many years. He is famous, he is loved, and the pinnacle of recognition is the award of the Alithiya Prize for journalistic ethics. Shortly before the ceremony of presenting the prestigious award of the American Union of Journalists, Silverio comes to Mexico for the first time in many years. He meets with relatives, old friends, talks with his wife and children and tries to understand who he has become and what he wants.

The biography of the protagonist almost completely coincides with biography director, and for the filming of the film, Iñárritu returned to Mexico for the first time in this century.

Surrealism squared

The plot of "Bardo" is extremely conditional. Dreams and reality are inextricably linked, the protagonist's fantasies are often superimposed on what he sees. If Silverio is imagining a battle from the Mexican-American War, uniformed soldiers appear right next to him on the screen.

The chronology of events is also broken - more precisely, it is simply absent.

The Bardo is a gigantic canvas in which scenes sometimes follow each other, and sometimes break off with a new mirage. Documentaries, taken by the hero, regularly break through the narrative. The puzzle is formed after the final, but by this moment it is no longer needed.

Absolutely every scene of the film hints that what is happening on the screen is not at all what it seems. That is why, at the very beginning, the TV, working in the background of a sleepy hero, reports that Amazon is going to buy one of the Mexican states.

And the main character sometimes speaks, forgetting to open his mouth - this terribly infuriates some interlocutors.

Again incredible beauty

The surreal world is created not only because of the illogical structure, but also thanks to the amazing visual range. A huge number of scenes were filmed in one shot, while the cameraman can change this in a couple of minutes. the number of angles that the connection with reality is lost only because of the changing picture, causing dizziness.

Iñárritu demonstrates endless flights of fancy, and the art team and cinematographer Darius Khonji create incredible scenes - this is the case when even a small flaw would ruin all the splendor.

Selfishness and self-disclosure

In Mexico, Silverio comes to an interview with a TV presenter - his old colleague. True, instead of answering questions, he listens to reproaches disguised as jokes. So we learn that the former car wash and advertising producer, who became a star and Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters in France, is now pretending to be the voice of the marginalized and the poor. “For years shooting ads for capitalism and suddenly started creating?” - the host asks, although it is obvious that he asks himself this question Iñárritu.

The hero is embarrassed that no one understands him, but he himself cannot understand himself. But it seems to him that he knows exactly how ordinary Mexicans live (after all, they are simple). Any attempt to speculate about this leads Silverio to a dead end. He considers himself an intellectual, but the inability to understand the next issue makes him doubt himself.

Iñárritu mocks himself, his biography and filmography, and then begins to defend himself. Then he again lashes out at himself, and when he lacks this, he begins to scold the film "Bardo". Yes, in this picture the hero can scold the previous scene.

Fight with the whole world

Flights, complex figures and a constant sense of loss of reality experienced by the artist inevitably leads to comparison with Federico Fellini and his "8 1/2". And yet there is a big difference: Fellini dealt with himself, creativity and industry, while Iñárritu challenges everything he knows. He needs to scold Mexico in such a way that he will love her, expose himself enough to believe in his own greatness.

A Mexican receiving an award from the Americans feels embarrassed. At home, everyone is sure that he achieved success either by sycophancy or as a representative of national minorities. This kind of rhetoric malice Silverio, and it becomes obvious that he just hates Mexico and Mexicans.

The main character is offended that the motherland did not give him the opportunity to realize himself. He is still angry at old acquaintances, and at politicians, and at history: he is ready to scroll through the expedition of the conquistador Hernan Cortes in his head and even argue with him. But after a few minutes, Silverio is ready to explain that Mexico is the greatest place on the planet, and the locals are magnificent, one and all.

Silverio is ready to quarrel with the whole world, but he does not always have enough words to express his claims. Then comes the time for bizarre images to explain feelings. But the strangest thing is that absolutely any conflict ends in love and adoption - even the bloodthirsty Cortes or envious friends turn out to be too important people for him to hate them.

Loss of a child

The theme of accepting the death of a child runs throughout the film. This is not only the most emotional part of the picture, but also the most personal: the director's son died in infancy. Silverio regularly hears advice from everyone to “let go” of Mateo, who has lived less than two days, but simply cannot do it. He doesn't understand what that means. Eternal self-digging and attempts to understand your past aggravate the pain and make you constantly feel the tragedy anew.

Surprisingly, in some scenes, absurd humor is encountered with the son - for example, at the very beginning of the film, the obstetrician tells the hero's wife that "the child does not like it here", after which he returns the baby to the womb. But regardless of the emotional content, all the scenes associated with Mateo are saturated with insane despair and an amazing warm sadness that seeps through both tears and laughter.

Organic Actors

There seems to be only one element in the whole movie that Iñárritu did to please himself. Daniel Jimenez Cacho managed to play a very charismatic character, such as the director seems to dream of being.

Walk, manner of speech, dancing, laughter - Kacho shines and demonstrates the whole palette of emotions of his hero, allowing the story to constantly rush between tragedy and comedy, and the character between irony and sadness.

The whole family of the protagonist corresponds to the level, in the end they look so organic that it is simply impossible not to empathize with them.

Dialogues on the edge

Every time "Bardo" wants to make you laugh, he succeeds - there are simply excellent dialogues and jokes. There are many of them, they are different, often bordering on the saddest episodes of the film. And at the same time, the timing is maintained perfectly - there is not a single dialogue that is too long.

Perhaps the monologues are much more complicated. Most of them combine pathos and exposure of this pathos. It turns out contradictory, but too human to see this as a problem. As soon as the hero utters the phrase “with meaning”, which a teenager could tattoo on his arm, he immediately refutes it. A couple more sentences - and suddenly it turns out that the remark was not so stupid - well, the character is right!

Interestingly, of all the minor characters, only one never doubts Silverio - his wife. Even children can afford to reproach their father for being messianic or overprotection. But the wife only makes fun of her husband, never touching his work. This may be a coincidence, but it turns out too beautiful to ignore.

"Bardo. A False Chronicle of a Fistful of Truths” demonstrates the inner world of an individual, Alejandro González Iñárritu, and immediately exposes this pretentious attempt with the help of absurdity and self-irony. Perhaps it is humor that allows Iñarritu to speak on topics that he would not be able to touch on in any other way.

The result is an unforgettable and touching journey into the world of dreams of a strange person who understands others more than himself.