Who is Dayani Cristal?
A challenging and moving documentary that highlights a neglected issue

Set against the unforgiving backdrop of the Sonora Desert, Gabriel Garcia Bernal commands a moving documentary, which unravels a tale common among many but largely ignored in the mainstream press. It begins with a body found decomposing near the Arizona border; unidentifiable by typical means, and the only significant feature a large tattoo across his chest, reading ‘Dayani Cristal’. A voyage of discovery begins; a mirror of two stories exploring both the person who lived and his final journey – the heart-breakingly and all too common failed attempt to migrate to the USA.

The documentary follows the police and the staff of Pima Country Morgue as they try to uncover the identity of ‘Dayani Cristal’ and reunite his body with his family on the other side of the border. Running parallel to the investigation is the reconstructed story of ‘Dayani’s’ last journey, in which Garcia Bernal makes the difficult and dangerous trip along the migrant trail of Central America. Whilst one man sits at the centre of the documentary, the film narrates a much wider experience, shown most compellingly through the eyes of Garcia Bernal as the journey progresses and he travels with real migrants across the spectacular but hazardous landscape; a journey which no one could envy.

More moving still is the tireless work of those working to identify not only ‘Dayani’s’ body, but also that of the hundreds of migrants who go missing every year on little support from either Government. Repatriation is rare, and the film delivers the hopelessness of many with a punch throughout. The sheer numbers are horrifying, but with the focus on one man, the film manages to make the statistics human. It is a forceful appeal: help the real men, with real families, simply and hopelessly dying in the attempt to better the lives of the people they love, and disregarded by the authorities who seem to care so little about them.

Whilst at times a little self righteous, and occasionally grating when the not-very-hidden agenda is a too obvious, Who is Dayani Cristal still manages to be a worthy piece of documentary filmmaking with some incredibly beautiful cinematography. It’s probably not an issue you’ve thought much about, particularly in the UK, and as such it’s easy to forgive a few of the more self-congratulatory moments of the filmmakers and see the work as an act of human rights progression. By imposing scenes of the life of one man against many, we see the desperation that incites the ultimate shared experience – the lengths that people will go to for the people they love. Who is Dayani Cristal is a challenging and moving documentary that highlights a neglected issue, and will not fail to strike accord within our common humanity.

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