If Embrace of the Serpent and Birds of Passage are any indication, Colombian director Ciro Guerra is a filmmaker fascinated with colonialism and human nature. A spiritual successor to both, Guerra’s Waiting for the Barbarians turns up the heat for yet another astute commentary on culture and humanity.
JM Coetzee adapts his own 1980 novel here, telling the story of a magistrate (Mark Rylance) who conducts a colonial outpost somewhere in the desert – the exact time and location of the story is never revealed. He maintains a peaceful coexistence between his people and the indigenous nomads around his colony; even the prison at this outpost is non-existent with most people paying for their punishments with a day or two of labour and calling it even. Those that need imprisonment make do in ramshackle bunkers. So when Colonel Joll (Johnny Depp) and Officer Mandel (Robert Pattinson) turn up at the settlement convinced that these “barbarians” pose a threat, their methods of torture clash with the magistrate’s abhorrence towards violence.
This, in turn, prompts nobility from the magistrate; he finds that a native woman (Gana Bayarsaikhan) has been blinded and beaten and sets out to save her by returning her to her people – against Joll and Mandel’s authority. Naturally, this situation is the crux of Guerra’s first English film and it leads to a lot of fascinating conflict between Rylance, Depp, and Pattinson; the dynamic between the trio is ferocious, and there’s a great deal of tension in watching their disagreement escalation and seeing all three talents relish in the script. They’re great performers. This is Rylance’s show, however, and the actor has made a name out of his chameleon-like acting; he’s on terrific form in Waiting for the Barbarians – his soft-voice and weary-face underpin his performance with a sense of ease. He’s perfectly suited as the gentle magistrate who practices pacifism and kindness where he can.
Depp and Pattinson are just as transfixing in surprisingly relentless roles; while the latter doesn’t appear until after halfway, Mandel is a vicious persona that frequently lashes out and Pattinson is chilling in the role. He’s a great counterpoint to Depp’s more cold, calculated and taciturn antagonist – just as devilish at every turn though. The cast does terrific work when the film is really at its height. And when it is, Guerra’s ability to hold the audience in a scene is sublime. The narrative and thematic presence come to head in a very compelling manner. However, the issue with Waiting for the Barbarians is that it struggles to get there. As great as Depp is, his character is a fairly two-dimensional embodiment of an authoritative figure. Pattinson is the same. Coetzee’s script doesn’t paint a hugely nuanced picture of “good v bad” and the setup can feel fairly lacklustre; a lot of the first half, especially, is meandering and frankly a bit boring as it puts things in place for the final act. It’s still an involving endeavour thanks to the cast and Guerra’s deft handling of the themes and ideas on show. He’s no newcomer to imperialism, after all, but Waiting for the Barbarians isn’t his most polished take on the topic.
Waiting For The Barbarians
Summary
The film features great performances from the trio at the front, but despite a meandering first half, the movie largely succeeds thanks to Guerra’s deft handling of the themes and ideas on show.
Waiting for the Barbarians is available on-demand on September 7th, 2020.
