The Salt of the Earth (2014)

Salt of the earth is a 2014 film by directors Juliano Ribeiro Salgado and Wim Wenders. It won the César Award for best documentary and it also won the Un Certain regard special prize. It was nominated for 1 oscar also. The film has grossed over 1 Million dollars to this time.

It follows the life of the inspiring photographer Sebastião Salgado and shows his travels around the globe and what he sees through his Digital camera. He has witnessed some of the most devastating natural disasters around the globe. He has seen starvation, international conflicts around the globe. Sebastiao as gone all over the planet to get his photographs and to show them to the world, where other people would not go he went to and he photographed the most inspirational photographs.

In the film it has an in depth interview with Sebastiao himself and shows him doing what he loves, taking beautiful and inspiring photographs. We look at his life and the life he has lived with his family and the journey he has been on in his life. Exploring the most remote and beautiful landscapes.

I honestly wasn’t too sure how to feel about this film, I really wanted to enjoy it, yet I found myself wandering off and thinking about other things. The film itself is brilliant and I do not doubt that as the way everything is put together is so brilliant. The music in the film really brings you in. Some of the photographs really made me think and wonder about what goes on in this world and what the media does not show us, but Sebastiao really does show what the world is going through and for that I have the utmost respect for this man.

The music in this film is astonishing as it really does drag you into the film. It makes the photographs stand out so much more and when the music does stop for the interview with Sebastiao Salgado the interview is amazing to hear about his life story and what he has done. Also I think the fact that the film is directed by his son is an amazing thing as it makes the film seem like a family project exploring the life he has had.

I personally think the film could have been better if it was split up into a load of different episodes as the chapters did split it up and made me wonder how long was left on a few occasions.In all the film as OK and if you are a big photography fan this is definatly a film you should watch just to see what can be done. It is a film I think I will be forgetting soon though. What I will not forget is the photographs that I saw while watching this in film club.