Review: 'Fire in Babylon' bowls sports fans over

Film:  Fire in Babylon
Cast: Viv Richards, Michael Holding, Deryck Murray, Clive Lloyd, Andy Roberts, Colin Croft, Gordon Greenidge, Joel Garner
Director:  Stevan Riley
Rating: ****

Fire in Babylon tells the tale of the rise of the West Indian team under skipper Clive Lloyd. The film goes on to show how a poorly thought-off team surmounted untold heights to subvert the past-time devised by their once-oppressors. It begins, as every true underdog does, with the lows.  Far from the gentleman’s game, the cricket of the mid-70s as witnessed by the team in a tour of Australia, was brutal and confrontational with the team crumbling under the fast-bowling onslaught of Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson.  Dismissed as ‘calypso cricketers,‘ the film elaborates how and why the Windies rose to the top, battling prejudice and barriers to consistency to become the most successful team in the arena of Test cricket for 15 years.

Physical prowess is an ephemeral thing; its life span relies heavily on the strength of public memory and the press which evokes it from time to time. To the West Indians, not even united by a common land – the Indies comprise several small islands – the feats on the pitch live on in culture and song.  And in terms of perspective, the film is purely a West Indian affair. Riley prevents the film from becoming a collection of talking heads by not giving much of a voice to outsiders, effectively lionising the team and demonising the opposition. And the contributions of the represented faces - from the stoic pacer Andy Roberts to the hilarious rastaman Bunny Wailer - not only add insight make the film the emotional joyride it is.

For those, such as this reviewer, who does not take pleasure in memorising stats and are largely ignorant of the history of cricket, the film is not overly technical, clearly favouring drama to obsessive factual correctness.  This is evident from a few visual representations of certain events that - as pointed out by more ardent cricketer fans than I - were used out of context. The film also steers clear of sticky wickets such as the decline and performance of the current West Indian team, choosing to focus on the glory years.

With its commendable editing, brisk pacing and soundtrack packed with jaunty reggae ‘riddims‘,  Fire in Babylon, will bowl sports fans over.

If cricket is, indeed, India’s true religion, this reviewer’s ignorance of the game condemns him to be a hell-bound heathen. Still, Fire in Babylon, breezy as an evening on a Caribbean beach yet as in-your-face as a deadly delivery from the legendary Michael Holding, got my rapt attention.