In January of 2002, when the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival played in Boston, a local film critic called American director Stephanie Black’s documentary Life and Debt “lucid in exposing the culpability and heartlessness of international corporations,” but added that “Black’s otherwise fine documentary grates when it indulges in a self-righteous voiceover.” That controversial voiceover, adapted from Jamaica Kincaid’s text “A Small Place,” is indeed problematic, but it is intentionally so. The words are harsh, directed at an American public largely blind to the goings-on of other countries. Now more than everwith the imminent reconstruction of Afghanistan and the foreign policy wake-up call of recent monthsthe time is right for a film like Life and Debt, which promotes the awareness that the U.S. and the rest of the developed world share a responsibility in the effects and aftereffects of global economic strategies.
The music in Life and Debt, which is collected on a Tuff Gong Records soundtrack album (release date: February 5th, one day after Bob Marley’s birthday), plays a key role. Consisting largely of reggae artistswith several of whom Black has worked previously in music video formatthe songs were chosen, says Black, because of a “special meaning” they help bring to the film, be it lyrical or emotional. Going one step further, proceeds from the sale of the soundtrack album, which also features excerpts from the film (“it’s a CD with attitude,” jokes Black), will go toward URGE, a non-profit world relief organization founded by Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers. Legendary Marley patriarch Bob’s song “One Love” is the most frequently heard tune in the soundtrack (in 4 different versions); the use of the bouncy, optimistic tune contrasts with what we see on the screen, showing the inherent failures behind the idealistic notions of One World and One Economy. Frequently, the happy sound of reggae music is used to speak of injustices and hardship, a peculiar irony that is utilized to its fullest in the film. Life and Debt is framed by reggae singers Buju Banton and Yami Bolo, each walking down Jamaica’s populated streets with a song on their lips with a natural feel that does not betray their superstardom. “I was interested in not situating them in a stage setting, because that’s where this voice is coming from; this music is for the most part coming out of the ghetto, and it is the people’s voice.” Another voice heard in the film, but not on the soundtrack album, is that of Jamaican-raised calypso star Harry Belafonte, whose classic “Banana Boat Song” lends an extra dimension to the description of Jamaica’s lagging banana industry, wherein an exclusivity of trade with the British, from whom Jamaica gained its independence in 1962, has irretrievably damaged the Jamaican economy. The lessons of Life and Debt are not easily swallowed, but the soundtrack acts as a lubricant to help ease these concepts down the viewer’s throat.
The film does an excellent job of consolidating complex ideas into an easily digestible format, and Black has enabled this by interviewing several of the people actually affected by the tariffs and sanctions imposed by the global corporations. Helping to tell the story are three Rastafarian wise men discussing politics around a fire, while very noticeably not surrounded by the ganja with which they are usually depicted in American films (“I was definitely interested in not fulfilling that stereotype,” says Black). Giving screen time to a slick educator on the subject matterDr. Witter, Professor of Economics at the University of West Indiesdoesn’t hurt, either. Black, whose credits include the production of several shorts for Sesame Street, is skilled at parlaying information in a memorable and often entertaining way. Life and Debt was in the making for the better part of ten years, and although some of the movers and shakers have changedincluding IMF Deputy Director Stanley Fischer, who stepped downthe problematic policies remain.
In the end, Black wishes us to ruminate “the question of responsibility” and gain a new understanding of the negative aspects of globalization, especially now that IMF and World Bank policies in other countries are making the news. “With countries like Argentina,” says Black, “we (Americans) don’t hear about it until it’s reached the point where people are killing each other in the streets, but we don’t hear about all the news stories along the way that led to this point.” But will there be, can there be change after this film? “My hope is that the increased transparency of these institutions will catalyze reform,” says Black. The last thing she wants, however, is to scare viewers away from visiting Jamaica or other countries because of the film’s unsympathetic portrayal of the generic tourist. “A lot of people watching the film think that I’m trying to discourage them from visiting Jamaica, which is the complete opposite of my intent. Jamaica is one of the most magnificent places I’ve ever been to in my life,” and she feels that everyone should take an opportunity to experience its beauty and culture.