True/False Films

Paradise — 3 Journeys in this World

In person: cinematographer Jarkko Virtanen.

Sneak preview. Having lost hope amid the stupefying poverty of his Malian village, the 23-year-old Bakary sets his sights on Europe. Elina Hirvonen traces his journey in reverse, starting in Spain, where the young man sleeps on the street at night, works on a tomato farm during the day, and in between is taken aback by the vicious, dehumanizing cycles of capitalism. In the second sequence, Hirvornen examines the border between Morocco and Spain, relating tales of struggle and misfortune by those who risk death during the perilous crossing. Finally, Paradise visits Bakary's home in Mali, where a local griot sings a song in honor of this prodigal son. Shooting in expressionistic long takes, using digital video to striking, at times disorienting effect, Hirvomen transmutes the lives of the immigrants into a vernacular poetry. Paradise, an essential exploration of the African diaspora, offers a human-scaled glimpse at the have and have-not dichotomies defining our globalized economy. Plays with The First Day (dir. Marcin Sauter, 2007, 20 min.) — School-age kids from a native tribe are whisked off their peninsula to get acculturated in the ways of Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin. (JS)