WAITING FOR THE BARBARIANS: Nuanced But Fails To Cross The Finish Line

There is a never-ending fascination with the colonization of land amongst those in the present. For many, it is an examination of the history and an understanding of how we got to today. For others, it is a reevaluation of the past and an understanding of how far we have come as humans – or how far we haven’t. With Waiting for the Barbarians both can be witnessed – an evolution for the future and a continuous fall back to ignorance and fascism.

A Slow Burn

Waiting for the Barbarians is a slow burn broken down into four sections: Summer, Winter, Spring, and Autumn. With each segment, viewers are given a feel of not only the changing times but of the Magistrate (Mark Rylance). He is the only constant figure of each of these sections, his evolution and journey meticulously and carefully played out.

While not much happens, you can not look away, the details and nuances of the film hypnotizing. You know it is all building up to the end and curiosity keeps your attention. What is most spectacular about this segmented layout and the nuances interlaced is how it lies rather in the character than the set or the narrative. Nonverbals speak louder than words here, crating an exquisite display of showmanship and craft.

The film brings a sense of continuity as well, seemingly ending where it began, character arches worked to their completion. Waiting for the Barbarians begins with the introduction of Colonel Joll (Johnny Depp) arriving to conduct a routine inspection of the town and its camp. Here, they are the frontlines against the nomadic Barbarians that have been pushed back into the mountains, colonization leaving many upended. He is immediately seen as a man of authority, his state of the art sunglasses revolutionizing the image of superiority and stature.

While the initial interaction begins as a simple inspection, it quickly activates a chain of events that could mean the end for all. Each section tackles the aftermath of the first, throwing each character out of their comfort zone, pushing them to show their true selves.

A Film that Weighs on Performance

Waiting for the Barbarians is met with beautiful sweeping landscapes of the desert dunes and rocks, contrasted to the organized and man-made colonies at its border. There is beauty in its color scheme and design, making it hard to look away at any moment lest you miss details. The same can be said for the characters on screen. Waiting for the Barbarians is a film that weighs heavily on the nuanced performances of its cast. Johnny Depp, while still resonating Captain Jack Sparrow, brings to life a commanding and superior colonel, demanding of the respect around him and entitled to whatever treatment he wishes to deliver. There is a quiet tension just below the cool exterior and even-toned speech that he delivers that is as foreshadowing as it is tension building.

Mark Rylance, however, is the true standout, the film’s main protagonist, he is the character whose growth and journey sees further depth and expansion. While he never truly changes as a person, his interactions and unrelenting guilt drive his decisions and actions. Where he was once silent and reserved, he grows into a character that discovers his own power and strength. Without the skill of Rylance, Barbarians would have failed to carry the same impact, drowning under the weight of its story.

Understanding the past for the present

What was eerie, and unfortunately a bit too on the nose at times, was the relevancy of Waiting for the Barbarians to past and present events. There is the image of superiority, that one race or group of people is better, is more civilized, than another. As the soldiers, and even the citizens, discuss the barbarians, there is little conversation on the struggles and challenges they have been forced into but rather the war and violence they could bring down on them. For some there is fear, for others, there is the excuse to do as they wish – to torture and abuse as they see fit. The barbarians are nothing, but a threat that needs to be identified and terminated. The imagery of the barbarians, stuffed into the prison cages in deplorable conditions will find an eerie resemblance to our treatment of illegal immigrants in the United States and the ICE internment camps.

Yet, to develop complacency in the citizens, propaganda and inclusion are utilized. You see this in the constant reminders that the Barbarians could come at any moment and declare war, threatening everything that has been created. There is a belief, even without any evidence, that danger is always just one moment away. As the soldiers begin to round up barbarians to interrogate for information, the citizens are invited to participate in the abuse, thus making them accomplices rather than bystanders. And not just any citizens, but the children. Complacency and the instilling of an ideal for the future.

What stood out the most was the Magistrate. Throughout the film, there is a guilt that builds. While he may not have tortured or even been present during the interrogations, he remained silent. He never cried out against them or even tried to stop them. His silence allowed this to happen. Today many come together to cry for equality and justice in the name of Black Live Matter, many who were once silent are crying out. There is an understanding that silence is just as deadly as if you were the abuser, and the film takes its time to mold this concept.

Conclusion

There are so many elements in Waiting for the Barbarians that truly shine through, keeping audience engagement and slow-burning to an expected dramatic conclusion. And while a conclusion does come, it’s over before you even realized what happened. For a film that has taken its time to bring you along its journey, it is suddenly over. And while the film may not be about the end, but rather the events that brought us to it, its a whirlwind of confusion as everything reaches its climax.

It leaves a sour taste in your mouth, especially for a film that has been so carefully crafted up to this point. And unfortunately, it drags the film in its entirety with it. As the credits roll, and you attempt to understand what has finally played out, you start to feel cheated as a viewer. All the attention and commitment to the story, without a solid and satisfying payoff.

Have you seen Waiting for the Barbarians? Let us know what you thought in the comments below!

Waiting for the Barbarians will be released in select theaters and on VOD on August 7, 2020.

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