Review of Baraka (1992) by Eric F — 15 May 2009

If you ever want to feel insignificant, have I got the film for you!

To say "Baraka" was an ambitious project is an understatement. Afterall, it's really just a film about... well, Earth. It's a meditation on our planet disguised as a travelogue of all the corners of the world. The film has no narrative structure or arc. In fact, following a screening of the film at Roger Ebert's film festival, producer Mark Magidson and director Ron Fricke explained that they would have to cut it differently had things started making sense. Some images come whirling by in montage, others linger. One minute you're in Nepal, and the next you're in New York City. While it seems like a 90-minute film of seemingly random images without narration would be tedious, it's remarkably touching. Everyone in the theater I saw it with sat in silence throughout the whole running time, mesmerized by the images. Strangely enough, this odd montage of a film is a deeply spiritual experience.

Madgison and Fricke, using 70mm film, traveled to 24 countries on 6 continents to film "Baraka". Many of these locations were planned in advance, and others were found by mistake. There are a few brief images of a sort of palace made of crystal and glass that i'd never seen before, as awe-inspiring as it was. That was one of said "mistakes". As well as filming landscapes and architecture, people are heavily focused on. Making a film about "human beings" is no less ambitious than making a film about Earth's wonders, and Madgison and Fricke do a commendable job of showcasing everyone from Latin American tribes to Australian aboriginals. Our animal neighbors have their moments to shine as well, whether it be a long shot of a thick layer of birds from above or a simple glimpse of a monkey in a pool.

The image of said monkey in a pool is one of the first in "Baraka", and it sets the tone wonderfully. We linger on a close up of the face of the creature for a very long time. Everyone in the audience is attracted to it's eyes and it's facial expressions. We think about what it may be thinking. We're universally connected. From that point on, it's all the more easier to relate to our fellow man after seeing familiarity in the eyes of a tranquil monkey.

I don't know if you can write about "Baraka" without sounding pretentious. But, to dismiss the film as pointless and masturbatory is to miss out on a wonderful experience. It's a film about everyone and everything, and it's presented in a manner unlike anything you've ever seen before. It's a fascinating meditation on our planet, and certainly a film that stays with you long after it's over. A delight to see, and a film worth seeing if only because you'll never see another film like it.