'Bacurau (2019)' is many things, but unoriginal isn't one of them. The film begins with a young woman returning to her remote home village with supplies such as vaccines, but it eventually morphs into something rather unexpected. I won't spoil anything specific here, but it's safe to say that the flick doesn't conform to any one genre. It doesn't even flip fully between its varying tones; it consistently carves out its own versions of them. It's difficult to describe, in a way. Essentially, it's never quite what you expect it to be, even when it seems to be heading in a specific direction. In many ways, it's all the better for it. It truly feels like its own thing, an amalgamation of influences that emerges as a distinct experience in its own right. There's nothing especially groundbreaking about any of its individual elements, but it finds freshness in the way in which it puts them all together. It's fairly long and it drags a little in places, but it's typically an enigmatic and entertaining affair that does a good job pulling you into its idiosyncratic world. It's at its best when focusing on the inhabitants of its eponymous village. Whenever it cuts to its other major set of characters, it loses quite a bit of steam and feels a bit tonally incongruent. There's a lot going on here, both in terms of plot and theme. Though it isn't fully cohesive, it's impressive that it manages to come together as nicely as it does. Apparently a lot of it plays out as satire of Brazil's current political landscape, but I don't know anything about Brazil's current political landscape; I'm unashamed to admit that most of the political satire went over my head. Ultimately, the picture is an enjoyable and well-written genre mash-up that's impressive in its ability to avoid labels and still deliver a compelling narrative.
