In 'Even the Rain,' a Spanish film production company shoots a movie about Christopher Columbus establishing Spanish rule in the Caribbean shortly after his discovery of the New World. We find out that the company decides to shoot in Cochabamaba, Bolivia, rather than the Caribbean, a continent away, because they can exploit the indigenous people as extras and laborers for $2 a day, a real production cost savings. Soon the parallels in exploitation between the present day Spanish filmmakers and the 16th Century Conquistadors become evident, even to the director Sebastian (Gael Garcia Bernal) and producer Costa (Luis Tosar) of the movie, and they become more and more uncomfortable in their own skins. They wanted to make a film showing the horrors of Spanish imperialism, including slavery, forced conversion, and brutality, only to find little has changed in the intervening 500 years. They have ties with the Bolivian and local governments which welcome their money. This government is exploiting the natives, not for gold as in the past, but for water. A multinational corporation has bought the rights to water, all water; from pipelines to community dug and managed wells to the very rain that falls from heaven. The native villagers are told it is illegal to collect rain water, ergo the title of this film, 'Even the Rain.' Gold may be valuable to those who like to own shiny yellow things, but water is life. So, this same population who has suffered foreign supremacy since Columbus must fight for survival again.
A revolt, led by one of the film's (or film within the film's) featured extras, Daniel (Juan Carlos Aduviri), ensues. The film production company now better understands and empathizes with these people's situation and has developed respect and affection for them. Choices are forced upon them though their overriding impulse is to finish the film no matter the cost to others.
This is a powerful film. Scenes from the past being shot by the present day crew and situations they face during production are flawlessly intertwined. The comparisons are clear, but not rammed down the audience's throats. Cooperation by the authorities had to have been extensive for much of the film -- with the use of hundreds of extras (I wonder what they were paid) and traffic control. The end result is a beautiful rendering of the bustling city of Cochabamaba and the nearby forests in the depiction of a social problem that repeat throughout the world in a mature, dramatic and empathetic way.
The lead character of this inner film is Father Bartolome de las Casa, the first imperialist representative to stand for equality of all people, civil rights and the abolishment of exploitation. The production staff and cast find themselves put to the test of this hero's principles during the making of his biopic. They even question whether they have the right to speak for him in film.
Bring a bottle of water to drink instead of soda; the impact noticeably increases.
Even The Rain
Director: Iciar Bollain
Writer: Paul Laverty
Cast: Gael Garcia Bernal, Luis Tosar, Raul Arevalo, Karra Elejalde, Juan Carlos Aduviri
Time: 103 min.
Rated:
Opening February 18 at the Embarcadero Cinema in San Francisco
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