Review of Waste Land (2010) by Lora N — 18 Mar 2011

Who knew a movie about the world's largest landfill was going to tug so hard at my heartstrings? This film followed Vik Muniz's return to Brazil to transform a location made up of "garbage" into art. Jardim Gramacho is where Rio's poor make lives by living in shacks at the landfill and digging through trash to find anything that can be recycled. Muniz selects several of the recycled materials pickers to recreate in portraits using the very materials they collect each night and day.

One of the strongest things about this film was the amazing pacing. Initially the project kinda came across as a gimmick. The film starts off with scenes from carnival...as the party winds down, the participants simply discard their used costumes as garbage trucks scoop the items up and cart them to the dump. But as the story unfolds, the incredible depth of the Muniz's pursuit is nearly overwhelming.

The pickers profiled in the film are quietly beautiful and amazingly eloquent. Isis, striking in her soft beauty, digs through filth in search of plastic while managing to stay cute with mascara, lipstick and girly outfits worn over her work attire. There is a woman who cooks meals in the landfill from the food cast off by supermarkets...over her 30 years working at the landfill, she has developed a relationship with the truck drivers that allows her access to the freshest of the discarded meats and vegetables. It's hard to imagine her hanging out with the free-gans in this country.

Though the most notable character in the film is Taio. He is picker that organized the workers and helped them improve their harsh conditions. One of the most poignant conversations was the one Taio had with Muniz about his new appreciation of art and how it is linked to a deeper understanding of the motivation of artist. Muniz introduces Taio to the works of various contemporary artists including Damien Hirst but the one that transforms his thinking about art is Basquiat.

Muniz goes in assuming the workers are going to show outward signs of depression and is in shock when he finds them relatively upbeat. Alas, it becomes clear that their positive attitude about their life circumstances is a survival skill. Female workers comment throughout the film that "picking" has to be better than the alternative: prostituion. They downplay the other hardships of life at the landfill...a place surrounded by drug dealers and gangs... where dead bodies are often unearthed among the piles of refuse.

One of the most fascinating aspects of the film is that the artist uses his subjects to help him complete the masterpieces. There is a great scene where he is explaining to them the odd but familiar habits of people viewing art and how it is of special importance to this project. He describes the way people look at art from a distance then move close to see the materials (the paint, etc), then step back to take in the image, then lean in again and back and in and back.

Another critical scene is when Muniz and his wife fight over their responsibility to the subjects of their art. Though they have minimized the potentially exploitative project by giving the subjects an active role in the process, the more time the pickers spend away from the landfill helping with the art, it becomes clear that it is going to be extremely difficult for them to return to that life.

A soundtrack by Moby and a mysterious character that floats throughout the film, are the final touches that complete this wonderful story that offers hope to individuals who may not realize how much potential their lives have.