Rich treasures are mined in 'Waste Land'
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Vik Muniz's portrait of catador Magna in "Wasteland."
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If you think a garbage dump is the last place in the world to reach transcendence, think again.
Watching "Waste Land," which opens today at the Oaks Theater in Oakmont, is a little like being on a mission of the starship U.S.S. Enterprise with its mixture of alien landscape and philosophical underscore. But its story defies comparison.
- Rating: Not rated. In English and Portuguese with English subtitles.
The riveting and beautifully made documentary is set improbably in Jardim Gramacho, the world's largest landfill, near Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where thousands of "catadores" sift through heaping piles of waste to earn their livings.
The film's twist comes in the person of internationally acclaimed artist Vik Muniz, a New York-based Brazilian native who chose the site for an art project. (Mr. Muniz was the first artist in residence at The Frick Art & Historical Center in 2000.)
Having grown up poor, Mr. Muniz now wants to give back. Known for his use of unusual materials for his artwork - chocolate, dust, sugar, contrails - it's not a big leap that he'd be inspired by trash. How he integrates the catadores, and the effect that has on their lives, is the film's heart.
"Check out this geography. This is like the end of the line," he says, pointing to the road that leads to the dump on an aerial photo. "This is where everything that's not good goes - including the people."
The landfill is an industry unto itself, and the catadores have formed the Garbage Pickers Association of Jardim Gramacho to guide community development. It is they who beguile Mr. Muniz and his crew - and viewers.
Irma cooks meals from produce and meat that she scavenges and sells them to her co-workers. Zumbi keeps all the books he finds and has set up a community lending library in his shack. Magna, who began picking trash after her husband lost his job, told people on the bus who objected to her odor, "It's better than turning tricks in Copacabana. It's more honest and more interesting."
First Published January 21, 2011 12:00 am
