Queerguru’s Ris Fatah reviews RAINS OVER BABEL : a fierce, steampunk, feisty, maximum-impact action drama

Get ready for a treat with Rains Over Babel, a glorious queer Afro-Colombian retro-futuristic tropical punk assault on the senses. Director Gala del Sol’s gem premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Fest and is sure to make its mark as it reaches wider audiences.

Based in and around Babel, a late-night neon-lit dive/cabaret bar in Cali, Colombia, we first meet El Boticario, (Santiago Pineda Prado) one of its barmen, and his mute girlfriend Erato (Sofia Buenaventure). He in turn introduces us to a cast of fabulous characters, all beautiful, fashionable and athletic, whose lives interconnect late at night at Babel. Chief protagonist is La Flaca (Saray Rebollendo) a powerful, divine diva with a huge afro. She is a gambling card player and holds court at Babel. The various characters must gamble years of their lives with her. If they lose, she either controls their lives for many years, or they die. Hunky Dante (Felipe Aguilar Rodriguez) is her fixer/grim reaper and guides each victim to the next stage of their lives. Buff Jacob (William Hurtado) is the angst-ridden son of homophobic pastor Don Alfonso (Jhon Narvaez) and is secretly in a drag
cabaret troupe who performs at Babel. Salai (John Alex Costillo) owns the bar and is heavily in debt to loan sharks who threaten his life if he doesn’t repay them imminently. His only hope to repay his debt is with the forthcoming sell-out performance of star attraction El Callegueso (Jacobo Velez). The problem is that El Callegueso has disappeared. Salai’s son Timbi (Jose Manuel Mojica) and feisty Babel customer Uma/Deep Purple (Celina Biurrun) set off to try and find him, together with her talking salamander Rosy. Roma (Roman Escobar) and Monet (Johan Zapata) live together – Roma is a dealer and Monet takes too many of Roma’s drugs, leading him into the hands of La Flaca. Overwhelmed yet? Well, this is just the introduction!

What follows is a beautiful, colourful assault on the senses, Colombian latino-style, as the paths of the aforementioned beauties, and others, twist and turn in a manner reminiscent of Dante’s Inferno. The resulting two hours combine strong casting, great art direction and cinematography, fabulous sets and outfits, and abundant surreal moments – especially those involving the talking salamander, a sex hotel and BDSM clad little people. There’s warm underlying messaging about believing in yourself, staying true to yourself, and forgiving yourself when you need to. Healing. There’s also messaging about resisting religious negativity when necessary. It’s a fierce, steampunk, feisty, maximum-impact action drama. Blink and you’ll miss a fabulous detail, so pay attention! It all makes sense in the end though. The film presents a very modern cool late-night version of Colombia. Lots of angst, past trauma and current personal struggles, although ultimately everyone’s heart is in the right place. This is Gala del Sol’s directorial debut, keep an eye out for her. Super, extravagant, eye-popping fun.

 

Queerguru’s Contributing Editor Ris Fatah is a successful fashion/luxury business consultant  (when he can be bothered) who divides and wastes his time between London and Ibiza. He is a lover of all things queer, feminist, and human rights in general. @ris.fatah