Of all the films by Alejandro G. Iñárritu, to whom we owe “The Ghost” with Leonardo DiCaprio, this one is the least accessible.
Whether it’s “21 grams” (2003), “Babel” (2006), “Birdman or (The Unsuspected Virtues of Ignorance)” (2014), or even the film “Le revenant” ( 2015), the feature films of Alejandro G. Iñárritu touch on universal themes and have one or more emotional components that make the viewer adhere, even identify, even when the subject becomes more abstruse, as in the very beautiful “Biutiful” from 2010 with Javier Bardem in the role of a man who knows he is doomed by cancer.
In “BARDO, False chronicle of some truths”, Iñárritu decides to delve into the memories and the present of the journalist turned docufiction director Silverio Gama (Daniel Giménez Cacho) with no order other than that of the thoughts of the protagonist. With clear references to Bob Fosse’s remarkable ‘Let the Show Begin’, Frederico Fellini’s cult ’81⁄2′, Monty Python’s and Terrence Malick’s work — including ‘The Knight of the Cup’ in certain shots with the main actor and Ximena Lamadrid who plays the role of his daughter -, the filmmaker begins his journey with childbirth. Childbirth which is not one, the baby – the special effects are not of the best quality and are unfortunately reminiscent of “Annette” – refusing to come out.
From one — superb — surreal sequence to another — just as technically magnificent — we see a bit of Mexico’s past, from the current situation of those trying to cross the border, to a return to the United States marked by the contempt from a customs officer. For 159 minutes – the 174-minute version presented in Venice has since been made more digestible – Iñárritu plays with the dialogues, the plans, the sets, making the spectator lose his footing in order to better bring him back into his surreal, dreamlike universe. .and devilishly egocentric.
Because, by constantly forcing the symbolism and unnecessarily stretching certain scenes, the Oscar-winning director forgets the audience who then, and very quickly, has the feeling of attending a monologue in which he cannot fully participate.
Rating: 3 out of 5
“BARDO, False chronicle of some truths” is on display in dark rooms from November 18 before being presented via the Netflix platform on December 16.