Old European Imperialism In Even The Rain

Icíar Bollaín’s Even the Rain, produced in 2011, tells the story of a Mexican film crew that is filming a movie about Christopher Columbus’s conquest in Bolivia. While they are in Cochabamba, Bolivia, they also encounter the water war that is taking place due to the fact that there are plans to privatize the water sources. Throughout the movie, the struggles and inner conflicts of each character are developed, and these help to guide the plotline of the movie. Similarly, through the depiction of Columbus’s conquest, international film productions, and the water wars, Even the Rain establishes parallels between old European imperialism and recent waves of corporate exploitation in Bolivia. Old European imperialism appeared in the 15th century to the 18th century. Although imperialism lasted until 1914, proponents of old European imperialism
With Columbus, this was seen by using the natives to search for gold. He and his company were gaining the benefit of finding the gold, but they did not have to expend much, if any of their resources, to have that labor completed. Their benefit to cost ratio would have been much greater than one which in turn shows that their benefits are greater than their costs. Likewise, this situation can also be noted in the relationship between the film crew and the extra Bolivian natives that are used for the movie. The film crew is similarly foreign to Bolivia, but they are able to take advantage of the locals. By creating a film that produces a more accurate representation of the events of Columbus’s conquest, the crew is hoping that it will also make more money in the box office. They are able to get away with paying the extras only two dollars a day which would not have happened in a more developed area. Again, it can be seen that the benefits are much greater than the costs for the incoming