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Birds of Passage (2018)

Birds of Passage (2018)

Greed gambles over tradition in this rare depiction of an indigenous Colombian community

7.7

Movie

Colombia, Denmark
English, Spanish
Crime, Drama
2018
CIRO GUERRA, CRISTINA GALLEGO
Carmiña Martínez, Greider Meza, José Acosta
125 min

TLDR

Maybe it’s because 2018 was a pretty competitive year for the Oscars, but we can’t believe this wasn't nominated.

What it's about

La Guajira peninsula, Colombia, late 1960s. To pay off the dowry for his marriage to Zaida of the influential Pushaina family, fellow Wayuu Rapayet and his family enter the marijuana business, though this eventually triggers a fratricidal war that ends up destroying their lives and culture.

The take

Organized crime and drug dealing has been a topic of many a film, sometimes even glamorizing the whole endeavor, but rarely do these depictions acknowledge the weight it can do to a culture, particularly indigenous cultures. Birds of Passage is a film about drug dealers, but it’s a much more distinct take, tackling Colombia’s reputation for the drug trade through the lens of an indigenous group that hasn’t been totally colonized, that still keeps its language, rituals, and legends, but is still pushed to the brink due to far more lucrative reasons. It does take fairly familiar plot points, but Birds of Passages transforms the narco crime drama with a different direction.

What stands out

The Wayuu people. Cristina Gallego and Ciro Guerra are not Wayuu, but they introduce Wayuu cultures and traditions with a lot of care that more directors should emulate.

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