About CC

“Human beings may well be unable to break free of the dictatorship of greed that spreads like a miasma over the world, but no longer will we be an inarticulate and ignorant humanity, confused by our enslavement to superior cruelty and weaponry.” - Alice Walker.

Well not just Alice, Radix malorum est cupiditas, a Biblical quotation in Latin, too states that “greed is the root of evil” (or, in sentence order, the root of evil is greed). It can lead to any number of different kinds of evils, not that all evil is rooted in the love of money, but that’s the most obvious case. That’s exactly the theme of this movie ‘Triple Frontier’.

Five former Special Forces workers reunite to plan a swoop in a meagerly populated multi-border zone of South America. For the first time in their prestigious vocations these unsung heroes undertake this dangerous task for self instead of country. But when events take an unforeseen turn and threaten to spiral out of control, their skills, their loyalties and their morals are pushed to a breaking point in an epic battle for endurance.

Character building was kind of okay but could’ve been deeper in my opinion. They were all introduced in a hurry to get into the climax; however that part could’ve been spaced out. One can love how the team planned and executed their entry into the target area.

The thrill factor- well, the things that happen in the movie were obvious. Exactly after the plotline catches momentum, it suddenly takes a downhill.

The actors were marvelous. But, the storyline could’ve been improvised.

Oh, Ramona! (2019)

Director: Cristina Jacob

Writers: Andrei Ciobanu, Alex Cotet

Stars: Aggy K. Adams, Holly Horne, Adina Stetcu

Doctors, parents and teachers have long held pre-conceived notions about why teenagers act so recklessly and emotional, and many of these explanations have turned out to be incorrect. It was once believed that teens were impulsive due to raging hormones and that they were difficult because they hated authority.

Various reasons, various opinions, but we can’t ever deny the fact that teenage years can be an emotional assault course for all concerned. A gulf can grow between parents and their children during adolescence. One of the reasons many of us find it so hard because it is a time of rapid physical development and deep emotional changes. This film, despite its numerous plot holes, perfectly depicted teenage turmoil, told in the way Andrei Ciobanu.

Awkward 16-year-old Andrei is infatuated with his alluring but aloof schoolmate Ramona, until he meets stunning hotel clerk Anemona while on vacation. May not make sense throughout, but when watched from the viewpoint of the protagonist, it all starts making sense. It’s worth a watch, good comedy, imaginative commentary and the mindset of a pre-mature teen boy. It is definitely realistic. Well done adaptation from the book!

Kardec (2019)

Director: Wagner de Assis

Writers: L.G. Bayão, Wagner de Assis

Stars: Christian Baltauss, Letícia Braga, Sandra Corveloni

The storyline follows that Kardec is a 2019 Brazilian drama film directed by Wagner de Assis and written by L.G. Bayão and Wagner de Assis. Hippolyte Léon Denizard Rivail, a French teacher who, when going over the phenomenon of "Spinning tables", discerns that there is the prospect of communicating with the spirits. As an encoder of the Spiritism doctrine, Professor Rivail assumes the penname of Allan Kardec and expands, under the direction of the spirits, the five main books that guide Spiritist studies.

The protagonist does not seem to have faced any real problems. Per example, there's a scene which there's a problem to resolve and a group of people are talking about this very calm, more than necessary, and one person appears "shouting" saying "calm down!" but everybody already is calm.

The fact is that it was a Brazilian movie about a French writer, which is visually appealing. Yet, it is apt to mention that though Kardec could’ve been an extraordinary personality. The production values are very good, but the script, and in fact the very concept (especially after stuff like ‘the secret’ and other similar works of literature) seemed like a stereotype and a commonly overused flat idea. Good screenplay (except, the suicide scene of the medium whilst Kardec was standing right next to him, seemed unrealistic), breathtaking cinematography and amazing performances. But the idea to be honest seems old now. There definitely were new elements added, but those were like 2/100 parts of the movie. Rest was plain. It was worth watching with a happy ending.

About the Reviewer:

Sukanya Basu Mallik is a multi-genre author and film and book critic. She has been published in various journals, magazines, and anthologies nationally and internationally including Reader’s Digest, Times of India, Sahitya Akademi Bimonthly Journal, Lucidity Int. Poetry Journal, SEAL (South East Asian Literature) Festival Anthologies and AIPF Int. Anthology (Austin International Poetry Festival). She can be contacted through email- sukanyabasumallik@gmail.com.