ScreenFish

where faith and film are intertwined

indigenous people

Song Without a Name – A Steep Climb

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Life is hard for those on the edge of society. It is often made harder by official indifference of authorities. It is even worse when the authorities feel free to take advantage of such people. Melina León’s film Song Without a Name shows just how such injustice can take place.

Inspired by real events, the film is set in Peru in 1988. There is economic chaos with astronomical inflation. But for Georgina and Leo, an indigenous couple in the Andes, life is lived day to day. Leo is a traditional dancer, Geo sings traditional songs, and they get by selling potatoes on the street. Geo is pregnant, and when she hears a radio ad about a clinic that will provide free medical care for expectant mothers, she takes the long bus ride into Quito for an exam. When she goes into labor, she takes that long bus ride again, gives birth, and encouraged to sleep. When she wakes up, she’s told the baby is at the hospital, and forcibly ushered out of the clinic. When she returns the next day, the clinic is gone. It was part of an operation to provide black market babies for adoption abroad.

On her first visit to the clinic, there were children jumping rope in the courtyard. As the jumped they chanted, “Single, married, widowed, or dead, divorced mother or not, you are worthless.” That rhyme reflects the official indifference that Geo encounter when they report the kidnapping to authorities. The police ask for her identity number, and when she doesn’t have one, she’s asked how they know who she really is. It seems to end any caring by the police, because to them she is a non-person.

It is only after she goes to a newspaper and finds a journalist willing to investigate that we discover that this is an ongoing concern that has official protection. But even when it is brought to light, there is likely nothing to be done about finding Geo’s daughter.

The film is an interesting mix of this story, and a look at the life of indigenous people such as Leo and Geo. The film begins with Leo and others dedicating his new dance clothes, and a celebration of dance and song. Those folkloric interludes show the richness of life that they share in, even if their everyday life may seem a struggle. For those who treat them as “worthless”, these scenes are a statement of the great value they actually have.

The songs are also very much tied into the grief and pain that Geo is going through. Lyrics include, “Time is the longest distance between two places”, “I don’t want to die alone far away”, and “Express bus, where are you taking me”.  These all reflect Geo’s emotional turmoil. The height of this is when we hear her sing a lullaby to her absent daughter. The emptiness she feels is palpable.

The cinematography of the film (which is done in Black and White with a 4:3 aspect ratio) places us in a world with steep landscapes. Geo and Leo navigate those difficult ascents and descents day by day. Their life is a constant uphill climb. Theirs is a precarious life. But others have their own uphill battles, as we see in a subplot involving the journalist as he enters into a relationship with an actor in his apartment building. Being gay also puts him on the edge of society, even though he has a respected professional position.

I first saw this last year at AFIFest. It’s interesting that when I recently watched it again, I made almost as many notes as I did with the first viewing—and mostly about other things I was noticing. That speaks to the abundance this film provides at a variety of levels. It is a blend of  emotional, spiritual, visual, and aural components that invites us to consider the lives of those we may see, but not truly see.

Song Without a Name is available on Virtual Cinema through local arthouses.

Photos courtesy of Film Movement.

Blood Quantum: Shedding History’s Blood

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In Blood Quantum, things begin to spiral out of control on the isolated Mi’gMaq reserve of Red Crow when an unseen virus begins to turn the locals into blood-thirsty zombies. As the dead begin to come back to life, the Indigenous inhabitants discover that they are strangely immune to the plague and are forced to care for those in the area who are desperately seeking sanctuary themselves.

Directed by Jeff Barnaby, Quantum takes the all-too-familiar zombie genre and somehow makes it feel fresh and engaging. While the structure follows the necessary zombie tropes, the setting and its unique voice breathe new life into the film. By framing the narrative through the lens of the Indigenous people, Barnaby’s vision balances blood and carnage with social commentary, making the film both fun and thought-provoking at the same time. Led by an especially strong performance by Michael Greyeyes as the courageous but emotionally broken Traylor, Quantum’s solid casting helps the story feel more personal as opposed to simply another horror epic. However, the struggle within Quantum runs much deeper than a fight against the killer virus. Along with the blood and guts, the battle within Quantum also reaches to the heart of a culture that speaks at a historical level. 

More specifically, while Quantum definitely entertains, the film allows Barnaby to explore tensions between Indigenous people and the white community. As the virus begins to spread throughout Red Crow, the fight for survive begins to also expose the underlying racial tensions that run throughout the community. (Incidentally, the film’s title refers to a colonial blood measurement system that is used to determine the validity of one’s aboriginal status.) As such, while some Mi’gMaq are willing to see potential for the cultures to build a new future together, there are others who remain entrenched in their hatred. While the walls literally keep those infected at bay, they also serve as a visual metaphor for the self-protection of a people that have been taken advantage of over the years. While white families are invited inside the compound, they are met with a suspicious eye, both as a potential carrier of the virus but also because of past experiences. As a result, Quantum highlights the struggle to build something new when history remains such an obstacle. 

Questions of what it means to tear down painful barriers and begin again are often painful and, thankfully, Quantum is willing to explore the impact of such decisions. Who can be trusted when history has shown us others have not been trustworthy before? Can forgiveness break through in an effort to move forward? What does it mean to celebrate our differences but come together as one? Even though it’s not  uncommon for horror films to delve into social commentary, it’s questions such as these that help give Quantum its unique voice and soul. 

While the zombie genre may have been mined frequently, thankfully Barnaby is able to breathe fresh air into his horror epic through his passion to explore new ground. Strong performances, a solid script and poignant direction give the film its unique voice and, as a result, Blood Quantum definitely rises above the [zombie] herd.

To hear audio of our conversation with Jeff Barnaby, click here.

Blood Quantum brings the carnage to VOD on Tuesday, April 28th, 2020.

Birds of Passage – Lost Values Lead to Ruin

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“If there’s family, there’s respect.
If there’s respect, there’s honor.
If there’s honor, there’s word.
If there’s word, there’s peace.”

Among the Wagúu people of northern Columbia, family is the basis for everything. If that is not cared for, step by step, all values will erode until society falls apart. In Birds of Passage, Columbia’s official entry for Oscar consideration (which made the shortlist prior to nominations), we watch as a family disintegrates over a period of years from the 1960s through 1980s because the values were not adhered to.

The story centers on Rapayet (José Acosta), a young man who seeks to marry Zaida (Natalia Reyes). Zaida’s mother Ursula (Carmiña Martinez) is unsure of Rapayet because he does business with the alijunas (outsiders, anyone not Wagúu). He is asked to provide a sizable dowry if he is to marry Zaida. While he is off working to raise the dowry, he finds some young American Peace Corps workers wanting some marijuana. When he goes to a cousin and convinces him that pot (which grows wild on his land) would be a more lucrative crop than coffee, a drug enterprise is born. Soon Raypayet and his alijuna partner Moisés have developed contacts and are involved in smuggling to the US. The scope of the business grows through the years, becoming more violent. Moisés does not follow the Wagúu values and his lack of respect for them starts the process that will eventually lead to bloodshed and ruin.

The story is told in a series of Cantos (songs) which mark off time periods. Along the way the guns, vehicles, houses of those involved become more upscale. And we see that the younger generation who have grown up with these new riches are separated from the traditions of their people. Ursula, who is the clan matriarch and keeper of the tradition, tries to pass on the values and mythology, but they younger people just aren’t interested.

This is a film with spiritual and mythological aspects. Within the Wagúu culture dreams, ghosts, and birds often bring messages and warnings. Ursula seeks to interpret those messages, but is often viewed as outmoded—an archaic remnant of old ways that others think unimportant. This serves as a rejection of the spiritual life of the community—abandoning the way of their ancestors for the riches of the world.

How do we look at the relationship of societal values and the health or potential ruin of our own society? I often hear people decrying the changes that have taken place as being the end of civilization as we know it because we have departed from our values. But I also note that such a conclusion may come from any number of directions—liberal, conservative, religious, secular. There are those who believe every ill in society comes from removing prayer from public schools. There are those who would blame the state of the world on the Military Industrial Complex. For some it might be the mixing of races, allowing same sex marriage, or corporate greed. Some would say we need a wall on our southern border and travel bans from Muslim countries to protect our values from outsiders (alijunas). Others believe those things are the destruction of our values dealing with welcoming those who seek a good life and freedom.

We constantly struggle not only to live by our values, but also to understand just what those values are and what they are founded upon. And I think we should also come to understand that values may evolve with the times. I think this film brings an important message that we need to pay attention to our values as we make our way in the world. We may not always have the same values, but being true to the values we cherish will be an important part of finding peace and joy.

Photos courtesy of The Orchard