Birdwatchers – La terra degli Uomini Rossi (2008)

Directed by: Marco Bechis | 108 minutes | drama | Actors: Taiane Arce, Alicelia Batista Cabreira, Chiara Caselli, César Chedid, Temily Comar, Nelson Concianza, Eliane Juca da Silva, Fabiane Pereira da Silva, Luciane da Silva, Camila Caetano Ferreira, Inéia Arce Gonçalves, Leonardo Medeiros, Matheus Nachtergaele, Urbano Palácio, Abrísio da Silva Pedro, Claudio Santamaria, Poli Fernandez Souza

As Kevin Spacey’s Lex Luthor proclaimed in ‘Superman Returns’: “My father used to say you can print money, make diamonds and people are cheap, but they will always need land. It’s the only thing that isn’t made anymore.” And that is precisely why traditional populations and industrial landowners are fighting a centuries-long bitter struggle: land. It is no different in the Brazilian Mato Grosso do Sul. Once there were five million Guarani Indians, now there are only about 30,000. That number is still declining sharply: not only because of the genocide, but also – as is made clear in Marco Bechis’ film ‘Birdwatchers’ – through suicide. The lack of work, food and a permanent place to live forces these people into desperate acts.

The Guarani Indians have the misfortune that their land is very fertile. The export of sugar cane, which is used to make bioethanol, causes ringing cash registers in Brazil. So the Guarani are condemned to live in small reserves, a fraction of the land that actually belongs to them. With his film, the Chilean filmmaker Marco Bechis, now living in Italy, tried to make this unfair struggle between the Guarani tribe and the ‘fazendeiros’ (the rich peasants) known to the world. He chose not to make a documentary, but engaged real Brazilian Guarani Indians, who play a fictional role. It makes for a very authentic feature film, something that could never have been achieved with real actors.

The film has one of the strongest openings ever: a number of tourists (birdwatchers) float down the river in a canoe, gazing at the beautiful nature. Suddenly they see a group of indigenous inhabitants: half-naked, with bow and arrow at the ready. When some arrows are fired, the tourists run away. The tourists out of sight, the Indians make their way to a pick-up truck, where a white lady from the local tourist office thanks them for their services rendered, pays them and takes them back – in their real clothes, jeans and t-shirts. .

Most notably, while Bechis is clear on the matter, he does not glorify either side. He has managed to present a nuanced picture of the dire situation: the Indians are just as much arguing among themselves and there are also unsympathetic characters among them. The alcoholic chieftain Nadio makes choices that you can argue about. And then it’s not about moving the camp, but about dealing with his son. The tribe also has conflicts between traditional and modern ways of living and thinking; the young revolt against their parents.

At first hearing, Domenico Zipoli’s music is at odds with the images, but complements them wonderfully. It’s like listening to Iron Maiden while watching a classical ballet performance, but Bechis has understood that these two extremes are one.

Identification with the characters is not made easy for the viewer: should we sympathize with Lia, who is first half assaulted by the scarecrow (someone who has to keep an eye on the Indians), but then offers herself teasingly to him? The viewer sympathizes most with the vision-plagued Osvaldo, who is frantically trained as a shaman, but his romance with Maria, the annoying young daughter of the landowner, whose land wants to reclaim the tribe, is insufficiently developed and serves no purpose. clear purpose. And unfortunately that is more often the case in the film: they start to tell something, but then it is not finished. For example, the storyline of the landowner’s wife and the scarecrow should have been discussed in more detail. Also the suicide action at the beginning comes quite suddenly and is hardly explained.

A shame about the weak screenplay here and there, but it is clear that Bechis has invested a lot of time in the preparations for the film: his knowledge of the history, the locations, the use of the amateur actors, for that he deserves a lot of praise. The fact that he exposes the problem of the Guarani Indians, and reminds the world of it, is also commendable. That alone makes ‘Birdwatchers’ worthwhile.