Film: Biutiful
Year: 2010
Director: Alejandro González Iñárritu
Written by: Alejandro González Iñárritu, Armando Bo and Nicolás Giacobone.
Starring: Javier Bardem, Maricel Álvarez, Hanaa Bouchaib, Guillermo Estrella, Eduard Fernández, Cheikh Ndiaye, Diaryatou Daff.
Running time: 148 min.
Life is hard. If there was any point that Biutiful wanted to get across, that was it. Uxbal (Javier Bardem), seems to be going through it all. His estranged wife, Marambra (Maricel Álvarez), suffers from bipolar disorder which leaves her seemingly unable to look after their two children. He's trying to keep his operations with several Chinese immigrants afloat, while they live in poor conditions. Uxbal himself doesn't live in the greatest of conditions. His brother is sleeping with his wife. He can communicate with a dead body's soul. He's also dying of prostate cancer. Yes, there is a lot that Uxbal and his audience have to feel bad about. And it's like Alejandro González Iñárritu wants you to feel as terrible as ever about it all. For 148 minutes. Doesn't sound like fun, does it? No. But while the film has divided audiences and critics alike, I still found the energy deep within my soul to like this movie. Not an easy feat at all.
