Bim (1974)
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Bim Movie Review
Bim is a 1974 Trinidadian crime drama film directed by Hugh A. Robertson and starring Ralph Maharaj. It is a very well made, but somewhat disorganized picture.
The hoodlum-son of a murdered labor activist is molded into a leader of the working class in early 1960s Trinidad. Trinidad and Tobago is a Caribbean nation that achieved independence from the UK in the sixties, but before that it was not just conquered by them, but also it was in racial turmoil. This film is about both of those issues, a movie that remains the country’s most important cinematic output.
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Bim is rather similar in its overall tone and plot to the Jamaican film ‘The Harder They Come’. Both are regarded as classics and I consider them both to be important and well made, but flawed films that had too many issues to be considered great by any means.
My main problem with Bim is that it tried to do too much. Hugh A. Robertson failed to direct the film properly as it felt messy, chaotic and at times even incoherent. They should have just chosen one theme and stick with it instead of trying to do so much all at once.
For instance, there is an older British couple in this film that was very over-the-top and rather funny in their dialogue, but the movie only included a couple of scenes that deal with British Colonialism. More could and should have been done with this subject matter.
As for the racial tensions, the film depicted how problematic the cultural rift between African and Indian subgroups in Trinidad and Tobago was back in the forties. The moments that called for the unity between the two peoples were actually quite moving and inspired.
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Bim was well made from a technical standpoint, but I watched a poor-quality version on YouTube, so I couldn’t properly assess how well made it was. The score is excellent, though. It was very charming and energetic as most Caribbean music is. The editing is also strong and so is the acting, but the movie had too many characters, so it failed to properly develop any one of them.
Bim is a 70s crime drama that deals with too many issues all at once. It depicts racial tensions in Trinidad and Tobago as well as the effects of British Colonialism and the country’s independence efforts. Thus, it felt overly busy and disorganized. It’s a well made, wonderfully scored, very well acted, and at times emotionally effective story, but one that needed to develop its characters more for bigger impact.
My Rating – 3.5
This is the 22nd film in my American Cinema Marathon where I will watch one film from each American country every day. Next up is 🇩🇴.
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