Biutiful is Oscar nominated director Alejandro Iñárritu’s return to Spanish language film after the acclaimed 21 Grams and Babel, with Javier Bardem in a hugely charismatic performance which powers the film along.
He’s Uxbal, a hustler in Barcelona with a hand in various dodgy operations including organising street dealers and supplying a construction chief with illegal workers – as well as a sideline in contacting the recently deceased on behalf of their grieving relatives. He’s also father to two young children, whose mother is bipolar and has only a sporadic commitment to parenting.
So his life is complex to say the least – and this is before he finds out that his nagging health problems are more serious than he hoped. Suddenly there is a time limit on his ability to redeem himself and plan a viable life for his children. His proximity to death and supernatural abilities allow Iñárritu to create some truly haunting imagery.
It’s a heavyweight film, and Javier Bardem may well be Oscar nominated for performance – he’s really wonderful, leaving you in no doubt of Uxbal’s essential goodness despite the illegality of his work and its consequences. Amid all the narrative complexity, Iñárritu creates some deeply moving scenes.