Biutiful (2010)

Highly Overrated But Still Good

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

I first watched this film two years ago and it has been haunting me ever since; I watched it again last night... It's a bleak story beautifully told and there's the paradox. I consider it the second leg of Inarritu's stool of films - the first (Babel, Amores Perros, 21 Grams) was distinguished by elliptical, multi-layered story-telling and the third (The Revenant, Birdman) by a linear narrative and this one by its earthy, implicit social commentary with a touch of magic realism. What makes it such a stand-out film for me are the dialogue/script - so natural and economical - the direction and production - one smells the sweat - and, above all, the acting - Bardem delivers the performance of a life-time. He deserves to be remembered for this (and The Sea Inside) above the pastiche Bond villain in Skyfall.

This Spanish-language drama is a thing of cinematic beauty. Director Alejandro G. Inarritu packs a powerful punch in this drama, painting a melancholic picture of coming to terms with the guilt defines the course of your life and learning to redeem yourself from the tragedy that threatens both your emotional and spiritual being. The Mexican filmmaker proves he has a gift in not only capturing a heartfelt story without resorting too heavily on pretentious craft, but breath life into the film from a powerful technical standpoint. And he makes the richly profound decision of handing the lead role to Spain-born actor Javier Bardem who stand as the true revelation of this tale. 'Biutiful' is not your average melodrama of a man trying to find his place in the world, it is something with a much deeper meaning than a by-the- numbers tear-jerker that straps you into an emotional roller coaster, though there are moments that dare leave your eyes watering. It is by no means a perfect picture as it does occasionally slip into the cracks of sentimental contrivances, but Inarritu's fashion on telling the story holds surprises that solidly outweigh the flaws. Set in Barcelona, this film follows Uxbal (played by Javier Bardem), a divorced father living on the crime- ridden streets where he resorts to underground crime including trading deals with two Chinese criminals to provide for his two children Mateo (played by Guillermo Estrella) and Ana (played by Hanaa Bouchaib). When he is diagnosed with terminal cancer that is set to end his life in a month, he find himself guided on a path of redemption as he attempts to make mends with his drug-addicted ex- wife Maramba (played by Maricel Alvaraz) to bring their back family together, while struggling to stray from the path of his criminal lifestyle. This Spanish-speaking movie, shot beautifully by Rodrigo Prieto, is a slowburner and moves at a pace that requires a fair amount of patience to withstand its long 147-minute runtime. But those capable of relishing in the compounds of the story meet the privilege of witnessing the poetic beauty of the Inarritu's style of filmmaking as captures an unflinchingly powerful character study of a man who faces an awakening in his life. And the events that transpire bring a hefty hand on not only setting stone to powerful themes of guilt, grief, and redemption, but paint an absorbing portrait of how our choices can change a course in the lives our surrounding loved ones as well as ourselves. Lead character Uxbal is a man with an enormous heart but nonetheless is trapped with a conflict soul as he struggles to come to terms with his lifestyle that threatens to tear his already broken family apart completely. And who would possibly make a better choice in the role than Javier Bardem, the Spanish actor who garnered an Oscar for his sociopathic role in the Coen Brothers' 'No Country for Old Men'? Bardem breathes unflinching humanity in the role with a performance that falls nothing short of genuine gravitas. He nails his role in a fashion that allows him to flex his acting chops with incredible poignancy. Maricel Alvarez, playing his ex-wife slumped down on her crackpipe, is powerful in her role as well, playing the mother of her children who are forced to deal with her emotional abuse as a result of her unsavory habits. From Uxbal's relationship with his ex, to the relationship with his children, the family dynamics set stone to a poignant element that contributes to the depressing atmosphere of the story. Sure, there are moments of hope spliced throughout the proceedings, but nonetheless did little to lighten the jarring mood viewers will feel during the finale. Biutiful is a rewarding, yet deeply heartrending experience with a beautiful slice of cinematic mastery to be witnessed from Alejandro G. Inarritu's craft. In an enormously wide range of foreign films, this one stands among a fair portion of others and carries a gift not many directors like Inarritu hold. Many will debate whether the film showcases the director's skills at his prime, but very few can argue the gravity he packs in.

So it seems that this title hasn't been received all too well by critics or the general public alike, but for the life of me I can't see why.From the tremendous use of framing and shot composition, to the outstanding acting and pacing, Biutiful is one of the most underrated films I have ever had the pleasure of seeing.Javier Bardem was fantastic as usual and Maricel Álvarez really brought home the show. She was able to bring such character to an otherwise lifeless prop. All of the child acting was pretty good which is rather hard to come by in this day and age. (Unless you're Haneke, then it's easy.)The cinematography was also pretty solid with some excellently crafted and well coordinated one-take shots which takes a genius to perfect, and Inárritu has pretty much done that by this time in his career (Birdman really solidifies that fact). For this exact reason I can't figure out why the Metascore is so very low, (same with the Rotten Tomatoes score, but apparently they see some pretension in Inárritu's art, because different = pretentious).However, I do have a few issues with the film: .Some of the character logic was consistently annoying and progressively got more unbearable as the run time continued. .There were at least a few scenes with some poorly dubbed dialogue which was hard to unnotice on repeated watches. So it may not have been the most immersive film ever but it's pro's most definitely make up for its flaws.I would highly recommend this film as one of the better films from 2010 and I would also recommend picking it up on Blu-Ray like me, for it is one film that deserves to be experienced to it's highest potential.

Biutiful is director Alejandro González Iñárritu's attempt at recapturing the sense of drama his Death trilogy (Amores Perros, 21 Grams and Babel) had. Expectations were high not only because of the success of the aforementioned films, but because it had been four years since Babel first graced the big screen. Unfortunately Biutiful doesn't fully recapture the magic of Iñárritu's previous efforts and this may simply be because of Melodramatic Overload. Iñárritu always had a knack for compelling drama, but his films never became melodramatic to the point that it turned me off. Biutiful pretty much reached that point. If you thought Detachment was depressing, wait until you revel in the quagmire that is Biutiful.We follow Uxbal (played by Javier Bardem) as he tries to make a living for himself and his kids in Barcelona. He has separated from his wife due to her bipolarity and alcoholism, so his kids have no mother; his only immediate family is his brother who works in construction; he earns money by finding work illegal immigrants and managing a group of people who sell fake designer goods; he's diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer and he can talk to the dead (with which he earns some money on the side when taking to the recently deceased on behalf of others). To provide further plot info would be to enter spoiler territory, but the above should give you a clear indication of what you can expect: tragedy.What works is Bardem's magnetic performance which is what convinced me to watch the film from beginning to end and the cinematography which capture Barcelona in a way not seen on postcards, in all its depressive beauty and dreariness. Those who were enamored by the nighttime Tokyo imagery in Babel, will find a lot to like. Also interesting is some of the camera-work during scenes involving the afterlife. The first time Uxbal walks into a room and the camera slowly pans to reveal a man clasping onto pipes on the ceiling with what can be described as an intense look on his face… Iñárritu should try his hand at horror, that's all I'm saying. Perhaps the film's highlight is the subplot involving his ex-wife. Despite her bipolarity and alcoholism, she and Uxbal try to repair their relationship and take care of the kids, until Uxbal realizes (again) she cannot be entrusted with this task, despite what she says.Overall, I think Iñárritu reached the limit of what the audience could take in terms of melodrama. Though reception was positive, in no way did it equal his previous efforts. With Babel, there was an overarching point and a sense of dramatic beauty that this film's title fails to deliver. Although Iñárritu's films deal with themes of death (hence the supernatural element in Biutiful) and mortality, Babel had more to offer (the theme of communication overcoming cultural barriers). Crucially, Biutiful lacks this 'positive element'. It feels more like a melodramatic downward spiral, as opposed to Babel which – despite all the drama – still offered a positive world-view, because it showed human suffering is universal and it is the point where cultural barriers fade away. It's unsurprising that Iñárritu's next film, Birdman, will be part drama and part comedy, which will be interesting to say the least.