Biutiful (2010). Dir. Alejandro González Iñárritu, Spain.

Recipient of Academy Award nominations for Best Actor (Javier Bardem) and Best Foreign Language Film, Biutiful is the story of a single father in Barcelona struggling to keep his family safe as his life, lived outside the law, closes in on him.

Director Alejandro González Iñárritu is best known for his critically-praised 2006 film Babel. Biutiful, only his fourth feature film, represents a return to González Iñárritu’s native Spanish-language, this time, in Barcelona, Spain.  Critics compared Biutiful to a poem and were moved by what The Guardian called the directors “cinematic language”.

Spanish actor Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men, 2007) impressed critics and audiences alike with his performance as Uxbal, the petty criminal at the heart of the film. In addition to his Oscar nod, Bardem received the Best Actor award at Cannes. Roger Ebert, who gave the film 3 stars, wrote that “What drew me into the film and engaged my sympathy was the presence of Bardem himself. . . a vastly human actor”.

Biutiful will certainly take you to place you are unlikely to ever visit outside of film; and with Bardem in front of the camera and González Iñárritu behind it, this will be a journey to be remembered.

Watch the trailer on YouTube.

This entry was posted by Jennifer on Monday, August 29th, 2011 at 6:00 am and is filed under Movie Monday.
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