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The Stream Queen watches Atlantics
10 Plays3 years ago
The Stream Queen is joined by film critic and video game reviewer, Justin Clark, to talk about Mati Diop’s ghost love story, Atlantics.
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Transcript
Fame and Imagery Quote
00:00:00
Speaker
to all the ladies I am big it's the pictures that got small
00:00:14
Speaker
All this way for my advice, I feel like Oprah. Person your seat belts. It's going to be a bumpy night. What the hell? I'm not going to worry about if people accept me or not. I'm going to make Hollywood wherever I am at.
Introduction to Stream Queen Podcast
00:00:34
Speaker
Hello, everybody, and welcome to the Stream Queen, where we select films by female directors to watch and discuss on the show. I'm your host, Toppy Alejo-Dibo, and every week I invite a friend to join me in watching movies directed by women as a whole, indulging in our love of
Atlantique by Maddy Diep
00:00:49
Speaker
cinema.
00:00:49
Speaker
Today, the Streamcoin is watching Atlantix, or in French, Atlantique, from 2019 and by director Maddy Diep. It's available on Netflix, and I hope after listening to this podcast, it will give you something to watch, or rewatch this weekend if you've already seen it before. Now, just a quick overview of this movie. I picked it because it's Black History Month. I picked it because Valentine's Day is around the corner, and I feel like it has a little bit of everything in it.
00:01:19
Speaker
But we're all the way in the car. And we are following two secret lovers, Ada and Suleiman, who, you know, they're in love with each other, but Ada is promised to another man. But one night, Suleiman and his co-workers after
00:01:36
Speaker
Months of not being paid for a job in construction decide to go across the sea to a different country for hope of a better life. But several days later, a fire ruins Adda's wedding and a mysterious fever starts to spread through the land.
00:01:54
Speaker
This is where things get really weird. But before we get into that, if you don't like spoilers, this is the time when you should pause and go watch the movie and then come back because it does get weird. It really does.
Guest Introduction: Justin Clark
00:02:07
Speaker
And before we get talking about the movie, I'd like to introduce my special guest, Justin Clark. Hello, Justin. How are you?
00:02:14
Speaker
Hello, I am fine. How are you? All the way from the East Coast. Yes. That's the correct names for that, because it's very cold. It's very cold. Justin is a longtime film critic. He's probably watched more movies than anybody else on the planet, I'm pretty sure. But there's other things that you do. What other stuff are you into that you're working on?
00:02:38
Speaker
Um, yeah, so I mean for 10 years I was a film journalist and film critic and then I just kind of transitioned into games and I've been doing that for the last 10 years as well. So there's been a lot of that mostly now for Slant Magazine and for GameSpot.
00:02:54
Speaker
That's awesome. I mean, so you're like the perfect person to have in this podcast because, you know, you can talk about films like to no end. Yep, I can talk about films. And if you know where to get a PS5, I got you covered, fam. You got you covered. OK. And then, you know, I'll just drop that in the comments, guys, if you have questions, I'll just forward it to him. Perfect. So, yeah, let's talk about this movie. So like one of the reasons I've been really wanting to watch this movie for like
00:03:19
Speaker
Um, hot minute. I mean, it came out in 2019. It was in Kane's festival. Everybody was like, you gotta watch it. It's fantastic. Mati Diep, who was, um, I guess her film was in contention for the, the Kane's festival's highest prize, which is the Palme d'Or.
00:03:35
Speaker
Um, and she also won the grand prix of the canes. Like this is for a black director. Uh, this is huge. Um, and she definitely set some standards, uh, broke some glass ceilings. So it was really important for me to like really just dive into who this.
00:03:51
Speaker
who the director is, like what stories does she tell? And I also, I'd never seen anything she was in. Apparently she is also an actress, so that's like super awesome that she can come from it, from like an acting perspective and also as a director.
Justin's Take on Atlantique
00:04:05
Speaker
So just overall, like what do you, first of all, this movie, what did you think about it? Well, I really, really loved it because like, especially this being,
00:04:19
Speaker
Well, we were past the spoiler point. So it being a ghost story. Yeah. In a way that just never like I am a huge fan of just any ghost story where like it's a setting. It's not just white people in a house they shouldn't be living in. I know. Anything beyond that is you've already got 10 points in my book that's already in like up above everything else. And the fact that is this particular setting, this particular set of circumstances,
00:04:48
Speaker
fascinating right off the bat. The second I knew that was where it was going to go, I was just sort of like, okay, you have my immediate attention. I didn't even know that that's where it was going. So I walked into this movie thinking, okay, it's a little bit of romance. It's some refugee story. Okay, good. That's how it was sold to me. And then I remember sitting halfway through and being like, what the fuck just happened?
00:05:11
Speaker
What is happening to these people? And I love when a film makes me do that, where it lulls me in with this false sense of security. And I think I'm going into one story and it's artfully done in such a way that I'm just like, it's a 180. Like, what?
00:05:27
Speaker
Yeah. And the only comparison I had was this very kind of, not low key, I think like Sam Raney produced it, but there was a movie called The Possession not too long ago, which was, it was Jeffrey Dean Morgan. It was a Jewish horror movie. All this Jewish mythology built in was just like, it's a ghost
00:05:47
Speaker
And all of a sudden, there's like, oh, it's a divot. Oh, there's gravels everywhere. Like, it's way more serious than that. But out of nowhere, it's like, it's a horror movie with these very, very different elements. And this was way closer to me for obvious reasons. I'm a black man and just seems like it's black people with very black people struggles, by the way, because the whole reason this starts is literally
The Refugee Storyline
00:06:12
Speaker
could re-title this thing, Bitch Better Have My Money. It would be so accurate. It would be very accurate. Like they pass away, like they resurrect literally because their boss owes them money. The only thing I wish is that they did more with that.
00:06:29
Speaker
Because I mean like there's just all these people sitting in like, you know, not squalor, but it's kind of very, you know Simple kind of environment and then there's this giant futuristic tower that just yeah, they built in I feel I think could have done more with that but the same time just like everything that's happening is just compelling as all hell and
00:06:46
Speaker
Yeah, that town was giving you like Prometheus vibes. Like, I was like, what is going on in there? But also, guys, do not mess with the Teamsters, okay? If you do not pay people, they will come back for the dead for their money. That's the that's the rest that I learned from this movie.
00:07:02
Speaker
I was born and raised in Jersey. That is a lesson that is ingrained in my soul. The second he stiffed them on pages, they're like, oh, they come back from the dead. They will get their fucking money. They will get their money. And just, you know, like if you're if you're listening, if you watch this is so, you know, it obviously starts out with this love story between Ada, who apparently is 17 and has already promised to be married to this guy who is technically just way, way older than she should be.
00:07:25
Speaker
Did I miss that she's 17? That's how I'm sure. Yeah, she's definitely more of like a young teen, late teen type thing. Like she just looks very fully woman at that point. Wow. Okay. Right. And so she is in love with Suleiman, who I guess is kind of maybe in the same age, a little bit older. But of course, like, it's really hard to tell how to age black people because
00:07:49
Speaker
you know, Black don't crack. You know, you could be like, you could be like 54 and still look like you're 17. So like, it's very, it's very hard to figure it out. But you know, there's a secret love affair between the both of them. And, you know, he's been working this construction job, like I said earlier,
00:08:07
Speaker
And for three months, they don't pay these people for building this giant futuristic towers. And of course, they decide that if they can't get work here, they're going to go to Spain. And I don't know if you've seen the map of where Senegal is in relation to Spain. It is not a walk in the park, guys. OK, this isn't like, I'm going to stick my thumb out and get a taxi. You're literally going through a third of Africa's
00:08:36
Speaker
Atlantic to get to Spain. And that's if you don't get shoved against rocks, if there isn't a storm, if you don't drown. It's like a long journey. I looked it up and I was like... And as it turned out, they did not make it.
00:08:52
Speaker
They did not make it. Spoiler alert. And the second I saw that map, I was just like, oh, they ain't gonna make it. That's not happening. Did you see the boat, though? That was like a fisherman's boat. Yeah. It was never gonna make it past like the first reef.
00:09:07
Speaker
I was always like, why didn't they tell their women where they were going? And I was like, yeah, I knew that my spouse was going to get into, if I knew that they were going to get into an Uber that was covered in blood and had nothing but animal parts hanging off the side of it. I would not tell my significant other.
00:09:26
Speaker
But that's where I was going. So we're like, hey, I'm getting into the motor car. They would literally stop you. They'd be like, you know what, you crazy? And we're not doing this, right? And so that's why you had all these women hanging out being like, where did the men go? Like, what happened? And someone was like, they got on a boat. And you just know, because women don't make these decisions, right? They don't. We're not that dumb. We're not going to get on a boat. We stop men from doing crazy shit. Yes, correct.
00:09:54
Speaker
And so, you know, that was like really sad and obviously like just watching her fall apart as she realizes, and by the way, you know, like this is 10 days before supposed to get married. And realizing that she's basically lost the love of her life. Like he's gone forever. And it's really rough, but you know, I guess from like a side plot level, you really kind of see the refugee story. Like how bad things have to be for you to like get in a rickety ass,
00:10:24
Speaker
boat with like I don't know like maybe 20 other people and just say you know I'm gonna cross my fingers and hope I get to Spain.
00:10:33
Speaker
Right, because the alternative is nothing. You sit there not getting paid. Starving. And you have families to feed, like that versus. Yeah. And for her to kind of have that be kind of the underlining current of this movie on top of the ghost story, on top of the romance, I was just like, girl,
00:10:55
Speaker
Snaps. Who does that? Snaps. You know, and, you know, she's brought some just some African mysticism to it that, like you said, like, you know, it makes a ghost story so much more different than if you had a scream or, you know, I'm thinking about another ghost story, but like,
00:11:18
Speaker
possession. Possession was definitely creepy though. The one from the 70s. That's a one and done. I ain't doing that again. No, I'm thinking, oh, like the conjuring or, you know, like, just, yeah, like something like that where, uh, you're like, just move out of your house. Like, what are you doing?
00:11:37
Speaker
And I think that's really the crux of it is the fact that like all these horror movies, like they come out with people, like they are loaded. If you are buying this giant multi-story New England fucking house and choose to live there, like you're loaded, like hereditary is brilliant, but like just like you could afford to go elsewhere.
00:11:56
Speaker
You could go to wood elsewhere. But let's be clear though, like think about all those people who like, um, you know, there's like a, there's a wildfire or there's a flood and they still don't leave their house. So I kind of get it.
00:12:12
Speaker
That makes more sense now. You're like, why wouldn't you move? And then I was like, oh, your house is on fire, but you still. So like, oh, but the equity. Yeah. Yeah, exactly. Like, no, I built this land. This is like, I will fight nature.
00:12:29
Speaker
Yeah. But in this case, I mean, like, there's no property to own. Like, they're sitting here, like, they're sitting in, like, shacks. The mattresses are on the floor. Yeah. Like, they're not dirt poor, but, like, they don't have enough to get that persnickety about. No. Okay, here's where, like, we're just moving out of this area. They're just, like, this is where we live. There is nothing for
Supernatural Elements
00:12:51
Speaker
them. Getting a new phone is, like, a big deal. Like, oh, my God, you have, like, a smartphone?
00:12:57
Speaker
a smartphone from Europe. They're still on a flip phone and this is what, 2019, 2018 this came out? 2019. And just like they lost their flip phone and it was a big deal. That's what kind of thing you're dealing with here. And you just deal with all these external forces that like, you know, the police don't believe these women that their men are here. She's due to be married to someone rich and like all of her friends are
00:13:22
Speaker
pressure her into it. Her parents are trying to issue all these virginity tests because why wouldn't you? You think all these men are unworthy of her. There's all these societal pressures that we don't have to think about, but all of a sudden, they are leaning on this story. It just creates this whole different type of pressure that I really love. It really does. Let's be clear. There's still some places in the US with the virginity test. Oh, yeah. We know it's just going there.
00:13:46
Speaker
Also, PSA of virginity is a social construct. So, you know, maybe take that as a lesson from this podcast. But yeah, like she just you could just see how empty she felt like she just went along with everything because again, she didn't she didn't really have any hope. Right. The man she loves is dead to all intents and purposes. And she's just like, OK, I guess this is my only option, even if I don't want to. And, you know, even the most joyous occasion that's her wedding day when like
00:14:16
Speaker
The streets are filled with people cheering her on like it's not even about her like you know, she goes into this room and it's just filled with all these men and Basically, it just looked like an interrogation to me not an actual wedding
00:14:31
Speaker
Yeah, it just looked like they were trading for property. It reminded me a lot of the last duel where they were just having this haggling over property instead of the women actually being involved. Yeah. And I don't want to dislike the culture. I think it's probably part of the culture and it is part of the culture. And it's very different from what we're used to.
00:14:53
Speaker
No one's going to sit in a room and be like, well, you know, Justin, you need to give this much property to marry this lady. And like, it's just not not on the Tinder profile, you know, like she'll tell you my property is a PlayStation and a cat. Enjoy that. But you can also find people PS5. You did say so that is a value.
00:15:12
Speaker
Is that a skill that I can put on the dowry? Is that added value that I've got here? Millennials in this day and age, that's like, that's the money right there. I mean, this is true. Yeah.
00:15:24
Speaker
She's like, oh shit, he's got a cat. Oh, that cat's alive. All right. That cat's alive? I know. He can keep him alive. Maybe he will be a good dad. All right. Oh, at least a pet dad anyway. Yeah. But then, you know, as I was watching it, you know, she said that, you know, the matrimonial bed catches on fire. And I was like, girl, that is a bad omen. Do not marry this man. Yeah.
00:15:45
Speaker
like that's not even an omen that you really see all that often i was just like damn these ghosts are going fucking hard on this they really are and this was even before i knew like it was a ghost because that you know like we we just see the bed is on fire like everyone's rushing to put it out and we don't really know why um except a witness is like oh i saw suleman and it's like what do you mean you saw suleman he's like in the middle of the ocean which kicks off this whole investigation also
00:16:11
Speaker
What kind of detective is investigating a bed on fire and is like that intense? What in the world? Nobody died.
00:16:21
Speaker
on the payroll of Big Mattress, that's who. That's true, yeah, no. I mean, I guess the family was rich and they were like, you need to figure out who did this because this is a bad omen for this wedding or whatever. And to be fair, like, I mean, they really make a really nice deal of like, you know, they're living in all of the squalor and then they walk into the most fancy place you see in this movie is that bathroom. And that's what catches on fire. Like, it's just this perfect little contrast of like, oh, shit, like someone's really coming for the wealthier.
00:16:51
Speaker
Oh, yeah, no, it's like all white everything. That room creeped me out a little bit, though. I was like, but I understand why everything is white again going to, you know, if you don't know, just just DM me privately. I'll talk. But we're not going to put this on podcast. But yeah, it was like creepy. And then all her friends are only like taking selfies on the bed. I'm like.
00:17:14
Speaker
This is weird. This is weird, right? No, it's not that weird. I've seen Instagram. That's a shot that happens more often than not. OK, OK, got it. That's that's like. So, yeah, so, you know, that happens and slowly. This story is unraveling that there are. Well, first of all, you have these women who are.
00:17:34
Speaker
getting fevers and waking up in the middle of the night and just like going out into the street and their eyes is just white, which, by the way, when you contrast it against dark skin is creepy as hell. Oh my God. Yeah.
Horror Traditions Comparison
00:17:52
Speaker
Like they didn't even do like anything. I didn't like, you know, just, you know, growl at anybody or exhibit super string to start bleeding from they were no black people with white eyes.
00:18:02
Speaker
And that's enough. A little bit of pee came out. It was that creepy. It's like no one's scaling up on the walls or anything like that. Nothing is moving. It's just white eyes. And that was probably the cheapest makeup stuff they did. And that's it. Yeah. And it didn't have to be a whole lot else. But again,
00:18:22
Speaker
people who have dark skin are seeing these people on a regular basis, know how to use the unnatural, what's gonna look unnatural for these people. And that's it. And again, the things that are creepy in this movie are, again, that white bedroom in the middle of everything else in that city. And these people just showing up in places with just no pupils. My favorite moment is later on where the detectives going through that tape of Suiman in it.
00:18:52
Speaker
And it's just like all these people partying and then you zoom on hanging out in the back with the white eyes. It's just like, ah, yeah. Like nothing is happening there. It's just a dude hanging out at a wedding. But it's not just any dude. It's him. It's the police officer. This whole time when he thought, oh, do I have like COVID or something? It was like, no, honey. You've just been possessed. OK? Like, you don't have a virus. You are possessed. And you're the one who set the bed on fire.
00:19:18
Speaker
I feel like we need a PSA of just sort of like, you know, one of those question PSAs. Do I have COVID if I just show up randomly at a wedding and I don't remember it? No, no, no, no. You're just drunk. Please get a vaccine and a booster. It's OK. But yeah, that was and I guess like also because like I was raised on Nigerian films and Nigerian horror films like so that like
00:19:41
Speaker
really hit me more because that's the kind of creepy stuff that we would see that would give me nightmares for weeks as a kid. So it definitely hit me from another level just seeing how they decided to create this. Very simply, this concept of supernaturality is happening here. There's something that is not natural here, which is pretty cool.
00:20:06
Speaker
Yeah. And that's, again, it's a different kind of horror movie than you'd normally see. And so much like it hasn't been run into the ground. So just the simplest form of it is still effective.
00:20:18
Speaker
My favorite thing is because I grew up next to Puerto Rican families, Haitian families. All of them have this very Caribbean tradition of horror that still, to this day, there's stuff that you just do not hear about. My mom and my grandmother, they were gung-ho about if I got a haircut and they just did a trim while I was in the living room. That hair goes into a bag that goes into a bag that goes into a bag and no one finds out about it.
00:20:46
Speaker
Anybody gets a hold of your hair. Yeah. You could be possessed. You could be possessed. Exactly. And my mom is a very smart woman. She was a teacher. And she will not fuck with that under any circumstances. My mom won't even let black cats into the house, dude. Like, that's how superstitious. And again, very educated people went to college, have really like, you know,
00:21:14
Speaker
white collar jobs, it's just a complete day and night. You know what, I think white people could do with a little bit of like Afro-Caribbean horror in their life because it will shake you to the core as it does me. Yeah, that's why one of my favorite movies is like The Serpent and the Rainbow. Because again, they tried to sell that for so long as a zombie movie. And it's not zombies, it's just their tradition of if someone dies, you have a very limited window where maybe they could come back.
00:21:44
Speaker
It's just the simplest version of them burying someone and just waiting for him to rise up again. That's the one in Haiti, right? Yes. And there's some problematic stuff in there. But again, like the simple stuff in there is creepy as shit. Oh, I watched that like, I want to say like a few months ago, probably around Halloween. And my God, I think that's a one and done for me as well.
00:22:09
Speaker
I was like, no one's blowing any powder in my face, OK? It's like, full stop. No, no. But again, that's the stuff I've been hearing about since I was a kid. And it's like, you don't see it in movies. You just don't. Yeah, because it feels so real to you. Right.
00:22:25
Speaker
There's no fantastical element. It's not like aliens are coming down. It's not like it's one of them living dead or something like that. It's just, oh yeah, this is just what we've done for hundreds of years. And we still do. And the community believes in it so much that it's as real as the sun rising the next day. So that's passed on to you. So then when you do see it in a movie, it scares the crap out of you. Because the whole time, you're like, no, no, but this is actually happening, right? This is real.
00:22:52
Speaker
that's like the power of something like get out as well because again like that is very specific like again it's not like rooted in tradition or anything but it's a very like particular black fear of just being usurped entirely by whiteness going into the woods or into the country that too and just me like going into
00:23:13
Speaker
Yeah, let me tell you, I have had a lot of white girlfriends, and every single one of them has had a moment of freaking out when I say, I will not go to this place where the streetlights have no name. You know, like, where there's just like trees in the road. Nope, I am not stopping, but I was just like, you have to. It's just where my parents live.
00:23:32
Speaker
Now, if I go only in the daytime and I'm leaving before sundown, that's about it. So, yeah, so like I really loved a lot of things about this movie. And I'm I'm curious to hear, like, from you, you know, if you if you want somebody to watch this movie, like, what would you what is the part of this movie you would share to really, like, get somebody to watch it? Um,
00:23:58
Speaker
Yeah, the first time that the women show up at this landlord's place, where it's just out of nowhere. And again, it's women, like all the women that we've been seeing throughout this movie, and they just show up just staring daggers into the sky. Yeah, it's just God, like that moment, like it's silent. There's no score or anything. They're just sitting there staring daggers.
00:24:22
Speaker
And again, it's so effective an image. And like, even in other horror movies, like that's not something you really see. Like, yeah, at least by something else, draw like a musical sting or some other supernatural thing going on. It's just a stare and that can be so effective. So even just like beyond like the cultural element of this is something you haven't seen before with this group of people, just the fact
00:24:47
Speaker
It's very simple, hard, done, right. It's good enough reason to go check it out.
00:24:52
Speaker
Oh yeah. Aside from it being filmed in Senegal, I didn't really see anything in that movie that said to me, she dropped a ton of money to make it. It was all just very simple techniques, simple things, simple sets that already existed. It just goes to show that you can be economical and still make a fantastic film that really moves people.
00:25:18
Speaker
which, you know, a lot of people who are coming up in film really feel like, oh, I gotta drop a lot of money to like make the best film. And I was like, no, like this did everything. It understood the assignment and still got us a fantastic film to be contending at the level that it was at the canes. Like, that's brilliant. But also, Rihanna, if you ever want to remake, bitch, but I have my money and use this sequence in your music video, I think it would be just as effective. I really do.
00:25:46
Speaker
Yep, somebody cover that song just so you can copy this movie. I'm sure they will let you do it. Yes, you know, we're on has got a new baby coming. I'm sure she needs some extra cash even though she's a billionaire. In the making here, let's go.
00:26:06
Speaker
So true. So like, OK, I guess you talked about there were some things that you wish that kind of they had expanded on a little bit more. So if you were to, you know, go back and edit, reedit this or you had a chance to remake this, like, what would you do differently?
00:26:25
Speaker
Yeah, again, what it comes down to in the M is ultimately that love story where Superman just kind of comes back and all he really wants is just one last night with his woman to say goodbye, to say, you are still powerful and you are still wanted and all that. But at the same time, the last time you see that boss is him digging grace for all the people that he let go out to see.
00:26:47
Speaker
I wanted closure on that. I wanted his tower to burn. I wanted him to lose all his money. And it may very well just be a Western desire talking here. The fact that he was forced to dig at the graves is also fucked up in a really good way. Why is he still digging graves to the day? He has not stopped.
00:27:11
Speaker
One thing that really that I still don't understand is why all the other women got possessed, but like Ada didn't get possessed. Like that seemed like something I'm still kind of trying to figure out why.
00:27:24
Speaker
Um, I well, I think it was the fact that again, like he was the only so mom was the only one that didn't want revenge. He wanted her. Ah, yes. So I think like the other one, we're just like more than happy. Well, at least spiritually more than happy to just go like, oh, yeah, my man wants some revenge. Let's go take care of that. Yeah, all he wanted was her as she was, which is that says something by itself, too.
00:27:48
Speaker
And there's also, and I'm not trying to read too much into this, but there's something about him choosing not to possess a woman and instead to possess a man. Everybody else, every other man decided to possess a woman. I don't know if there's some kind of commentary on that, some societal commentary on it, but there's something there for me I feel like for this particular film.
Societal Themes: Possession and Love
00:28:11
Speaker
Yeah.
00:28:13
Speaker
yeah just the fact that he like again like you possessed probably the one truly tenacious man in here like again he
00:28:23
Speaker
knows something is wrong, but just really can't put his finger on it. Like he's at least determined in something other than he wants to control this woman's life. He just knows there's something going wrong in his neighborhood and is determined to stop it. Yeah. And yeah. And I mean, that love story to me, you know, we always talk about Romeo and Juliet, but those two people died. They didn't come back for each other. OK, so you know, and you know, we have this story about like a love that defies death.
00:28:52
Speaker
like the love is so strong that he's pulled back. He did burn the wedding bed. That's fair. He's a little upset. But he also just came back from the dead. So there's a lot going on. Listen, they did get down on the end. They didn't need that bed for that. They did not need that bed for that.
00:29:10
Speaker
But I also feel like this was a journey for Ada to really like discover herself. She kind of been floating through, you know, just following tradition, following what her parents wanted. And maybe this is where I related to her. You know, she was going to marry this man like she's supposed to, even though she really wanted something different for herself. And at that moment where she gives in to Suleiman, even though technically he's possessing the police officer, and she wakes up, I think she's a completely different person now.
00:29:40
Speaker
absolutely yeah just um yeah agreed just she has this little journey here that's
00:29:48
Speaker
You know, one is just coming to grips with the fact of just why everyone went away, why everyone is pushing her into this thing that she doesn't want to do. But again, she's so passive at the beginning of it that just her picking a side and having that determination is an arc in and of itself. There's a lot going on in this movie for just a relatively short amount of time, like it's about an hour and 40. Yeah, it's not that long. It's like 106 minutes.
00:30:15
Speaker
yeah it's not that long but just there's so much going on that it's just like both unsaid and just also just delved into it a way that you just do not see i do agree with you though like a little closure on the um construction boss um to seeing whether he at any point it gets some form of not redemption but just really
00:30:39
Speaker
understands how wrong he was. Right. Because he kept all that money and he's like spending on himself and there are people literally starving. But it also like highlights the dog eat dog world that they live in. You know, it's like I will screw over other people so I can have a better life. And that's just the way some people are living right there. And it just shows the desperation to be able to make that journey that could kill you like that, you know, that you may not survive.
00:31:09
Speaker
But, you know, you end up having these people that take advantage of other people in their community. And so, yeah, I would have liked to see some kind of closure like is he at the end of it, does he die? Is he weeping? Is he like, OK, that's done. I'm going to go back to like what I was doing before, you know. Yeah, a few closures for different people, especially the police officer who just had sex with this woman now and is like, wait,
00:31:35
Speaker
I'm sorry. What just happened? It's like one of those one night stand where you were just so drunk and then you woke up. Did I get laid last night? Yeah. Did that happen? Did that happen? I don't remember this bar. How did I get to this bar? So there's all of those questions. All you see him do is give his badge up and then he leaves. And I'm like, but what does that mean?
00:32:01
Speaker
Are you going to get arrested for setting the bed on fire or what? And it's so the one other like African film that like really got like a lot of high profile attention that I've actually seen is and I'm going to butcher the pronunciation of it, but Sotzi. Oh, I know that one. But OK.
00:32:24
Speaker
Yeah, it's a South African film where just this, you know, this street bug just like ends up, well, he ends up trying to steal his boss's car and finds out there's this baby in the backseat. Whoa. Yeah. And obviously he can't return the baby because obviously, you know, he's going to jail after that. And he decides to just go on the run with this baby. And he's like, I guess I'm leaving town. I guess I'm a dad now. But.
00:32:51
Speaker
But just like, again, like it's this very pointed commentary on like, you know, the inequality of it all just like who can afford to have a baby and like all this opulence and like this fancy car and all this other stuff. Yeah, that seems to be a common thread and just like I wanted that like final button on it to just really hammer that home is what it comes down to.
00:33:13
Speaker
Yeah, I would have settled for just one shot of just like the boss kind of sitting in a desert like his arms Don't work anymore. Just sort of like I need an uber to take me home. I did so yeah, that's I mean, yeah That's true. I was just thinking I don't think they have uber
00:33:31
Speaker
I don't know why that's where I got stuck out. I was like, I'm just going to Uber this guy. I mean, it was typically his version of Uber is I hope I want one of them to come take him to the hospital or whatever. Didn't they burn his house? I feel like they set fire to his house. I think that was his. No, it wasn't his bed again. I think they walked out and something was on fire. I can't remember what it was.
00:34:01
Speaker
Yeah, waiting to exhale. God, I love that movie. And Suleiman showing up as someone else's body, I was like, wait a minute, these are quantum leap rules. He's like, when he looks in the mirror, it's a different person. I was like, I see you. So all you millennials who grew up watching quantum leap, I think you'll enjoy that little moment until a very validated day. You know what I'm talking about.
00:34:19
Speaker
That was definitely a girl boss moment.
00:34:26
Speaker
So then tell me, overall, what is your rating out of five stars for this movie? That is a solid four. There was a lot going on here that I wasn't ready for it, but by the end of it, I absolutely needed it. That was just the kind of movie I absolutely needed to see and would like to see more of. And I know there's just this whole
00:34:52
Speaker
deep catalog of African cinema that I still need to dig into. As a matter of fact, Satya, again, that was the biggest high profile one that I've seen, but it's also a white director. Funny enough, the guy who directed X-Men Origins Wolverine later. What? That's day and night. Yeah. I don't know how he got that job. Oh, man.
00:35:14
Speaker
Oh, that poor bastard. But either way, Sotzi, however, is very, very good. Pulled a short straw but still made it work. Exactly. We don't hold his successive work against him, just that particular movie is good. And just again, there's a lot more that came from that just I still need to get into because this perspective is just absolutely wonderful.
00:35:36
Speaker
Yeah, and you know, it's very rare to see a film that that can traverse multiple genres because, you know, technically this film is a romance film and has been pegged as a horror. It's been pegged as drama like it just.
00:35:52
Speaker
It just has so many things and they just switch to it. And sometimes when movies do that, you're just like, make up your mind which one you want. But I feel like it's intertwined in such a smart way that I wasn't even thinking that. I was just...
00:36:08
Speaker
like, shocked by the direction it took. And he's like, I'm okay with this. I think. It was like, all right, Matty, just take me where you're going. I'll follow. So and I know you mentioned this earlier, but like, what would you say is like your favorite part of the movie?
00:36:29
Speaker
Yeah, just watching these women just show up at this dude's house and just stare and just this judgment from black women in particular. Again, just an image you do not see, but is absolutely invaluable to have somewhere in there.
00:36:46
Speaker
Oh, yeah. And I would say to compliment yours, that moment on the beach where he's begging for his life. Yes. And they're just kind of there's so much power, like they're like an army and, you know, there's some of them are sitting, some of them standing around and, you know, he finally gives them their money and they were like, you have to dig a grave for every one of us. And I just I was just some boss bitch moves. Right. You know, like.
00:37:11
Speaker
They don't have shoes on. They're still in their nightgowns. But we just felt so powerful in that moment to be able to avenge the people that they lost, to be able to ask for what they're due. Again, like black women, just create it. I really like the contrast because there's a lot of shots in here that are just like these women just kind of sitting around, just kind of invisible to whatever the men are doing in
Empowerment Imagery
00:37:36
Speaker
that particular scene. And now just like you cannot take your eyes off of them in this particular moment.
00:37:41
Speaker
No. And just, yeah, fantastic all around. Well, anything else you want to add about this movie? The score was actually very, very good. I will say that much as well. It was. That is like lo-fi vibes all the way. I want to just put that on a title playlist somewhere. I'm going to take that on vacation.
00:38:01
Speaker
You know, I don't think I talk enough about scores in this podcast. You've just reminded me. I'm going to add a question about that going forward, because there are some. And I do remember thinking that when I was listening to, when I was watching this, that the score was pretty great. And I was like, who helped you with this lady friend? I mean, put his name down, or her name down, whoever. But yes, just some absolutely great work. So I'm so excited that we got to watch him. So excited that I was able to set this up with you, because I've always wanted to do my podcast and now you're here.
00:38:31
Speaker
And I can't wait to like schedule for some other stuff. But again, this is a movie by Matti Diop. It's available on Netflix. Thank you Justin for chatting with me about it. And you know, like I said guys go check it out. I know that half the population at least owns Netflix or you can steal from your mom. Whoever just you know, it's it's once you get the subscription that's free.
00:38:55
Speaker
But, you know, go watch it.
Podcast Wrap Up
00:38:57
Speaker
And when we post this, feel free to comment on my Instagram. Let us know what you think about it, what scared you, what you loved, just all of the deets. We want to hear it. And obviously subscribe to my podcast and you will get to hear more about movies directed by women.
00:39:15
Speaker
And, you know, we're so close to Oscar season and there's been a couple of great women that have been nominated or their work. So check those out. I talk about them on Instagram, but and on Twitter. So like, you know, you can also do that. But yeah, thank you so much for listening and from your stream queen. Good night.