Birds of Passage (15)

BORDERLINES FILM FESTIVAL PREVIEW

Directors: Cristina Gallego, Ciro Guerra

Starring: Natalia Reyes, Carmiña Martínez, José Acosta

Colombia/Denmark/Mexico, 2018 2 hours 5 minutes

From the team behind Embrace of the Serpent comes a Mafia story, not unlike the thread of The Sopranos, but with a crucial difference in context.

In the late 1960s, the Wayúu tribe of northern Colombia observe a strict code of ancestral tradition and sacred ritual. Outsider Rapayet wants to marry Zaida, the daughter of the clan’s formidable matriarch, Ursula. Unable to afford the extravagant dowry set by Ursula (50 goats, 20 cows and numerous necklaces), Rapayet upgrades from selling coffee to dealing marijuana to American hippies to cover the cost. With this new criminal outlet, Ursula gets involved and, over the course of the ensuing decade, the once humble tribe builds a ruthless empire in the desert. It’s a sprawling, spiritual exploration of family conflict and tribal warfare, laced with heady and vivid symbolism and surrealist flashes.

“A visually stunning and often surprising true story… practically erupts with colour” Peter Debruge

Cert: 15

Running time: 2hrs 5mins

Language: Wayuu & Spanish with English subtitles

Variety Preview courtesy of Curzon Artificial Eye