Elza

 Elza

    Elza is an intriguing film on discovering your identity and the place you come from. Elza certainly learns much on what it means to be from the Caribbean and how they lead a different way of life. I think that would foremost stood out to me was the income disparity between rich and poor groups on the island. Elza's father owns a construction company that is built off the profits of extremely impoverished and overworked employees. It seems that Elza's father is the only one doing well on the whole island, with Bernard doing markedly better than most but still didn't appear to be of great wealth. Bernard is also white, and Elza's father is of mixed descent but still whiter than most. This points to the idea that there is not only an extreme income disparity on the island but there is an extreme racial disparity on the island too. Race and income go hand in hand in the Caribbean but also around the world. Often times you'll find that poverty is correlated with certain ethnic groups and as a result crime is correlated with these ethnic groups but in reality, it is the poverty itself that often comes with being a member of certain ethnic groups. Elza rides around the island on a moped and drives by droves of working-class individuals in modest living spaces again with the inherent poverty providing a contrast to the natural beauty of the island.

    I found myself startled by the perception and treatment of women in this film as well. Elza is sexually harassed over the course of the film by Bernard who can't seem to keep his hands off of her. Bernard inappropriately speaks to and touches Elza multiple times throughout the course of the film with just one of these instances equally jail time or legal trouble in the United States. Elza, not in a position of power, likely felt like she couldn't talk to anyone about Bernard since he had a higher standing with the family than she did. Despite this, at one point Bernard is caught harassing Elza and is pulled away from her but there is no discussion afterward in any capacity. I think this is so shocking to me as this kind of treatment towards a woman would not be at all tolerated in the United States. In the US we have many avenues for women to turn to if they are being abused and many outlets more than happy to aid. It appears to me that this is just not present in the Caribbean and unfortunately in much of the first world. It is unfortunate to see that sexual harassment is either an ignored or an accepted part of the culture in the Caribbean. The treatment of women in general is sub-par in the Caribbean. Throughout the film Elza's dad goes about womanizing and having illegitimate children he won't take responsibility for. It seems very easy to brush women aside in the Caribbean and leave them with the burden of a child 

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