Tag: PRIFF

The Enlighten Heist, reviewed.

Feb 4th, 2024

★★☆☆☆

The Enlighten Heist is an interesting concept at retelling Exodus 28 through the lens of the blaxploitation genre, and a Soderbergh-esque drenched setting.

In Exodus 28, Moses instructs Aaron that God demands he must serve in the priesthood, along with his sons. Breastplates made of gold are included in the vestments that are to be made. Paralleling this, the Guru (Brian Barber) instructs Dice (Joshua White) that he must undertake the heist he’s hired to do. A breastplate made of gold is what Dice finds.

In the first segment titled ‘The Casino’, this viewer didn’t recognise the biblical nature as the Guru seems like one of the lads in Dice’s circle. When we reach ‘The Setup’ this becomes noticeable. As Dice ducks and sneaks in his balaclava, the Guru follows behind completely unphased. By ‘Enlightened’ it’s evident that the Guru is a spiritual figment to Dice. The heist wasn’t carried out for greed, it was because a breastplate needs protecting. Guru tells Dice “Your journey has led you to this sacred duty. Now you must guard it with your life.”

“…behold the majestic breastplate… – a luminous tapestry that whispers the epic saga of the Israelites through the ages” reads at the beginning of the film. It oozes an air of pomposity. By the end of this tale though, it makes a little bit more sense.

Director, writer, producer, and editor D’Angelo Harris attempts to create a blaxploitation riff. This can be seen in the way music is applied throughout. It’s smooth and cool. The Soderbergh-esque split screen usage attempts to add a sense of urgency, but unfortunately feels useless and becomes jarring.

The Enlighten Heist goes heavy on the ‘enlighten’ and light on the ‘heist’. Retelling Exodus 28 is admirable, but this is a tale that could’ve been told more intimately. Show us what makes Dice and Guru so special if they are meant to be the new Aaron and Moses after all.

Film Festival | Phoenix Rising International Film Festival (priff.co.uk)
Perverse actions and ‘loving’ consequences

Nov 24th, 2023

Quinn da Matta’s Into Temptation, reviewed.

Into Temptation dares to ask how growing up with a perverse kind of “love” can shape a person.

★★★★☆

Nominated for 4 PRIFF Awards at this year’s festival (Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor), Into Temptation tells the story of Michael (Juan Manuel Solcito). As a victim of the sins and abuse of Father Graham (Tom McLaren) twenty years earlier, Michael has grown up not feeling like a victim of these sins and instead holds the bitterness of a rejected lover.

It’s time for Graham to answer for these sins as Michael holds him in captivity, tied to a bed. Interestingly, the captivity Michael holds Graham in is less so a demand for answers and more so a demand for love. Having a perverse version of morality fed to him, Michael fails to see how holding a person captive against their will isn’t love. “Love is as strong as death” reads Graham from the Song of Solomon, for both are passion. Michael fails to differentiate different versions of passion. Graham realises his captivity is the ‘loving’ consequence of his perverse actions.

Juan Manuel Solcito excels. He portrays Michael with the depth and respect a victim would deserve. In his eyes, we can see a suppression of pain. Michael can understand he has been hurt but would rather revert back to innocence rather than address the abuse head-on. Paul Spaeth’s original score is comprised of flute and cello. A beautiful melancholic sound matches the feeling of reminiscence, but also a fear of doing so.

Quinn da Matta, acting as director, writer and editor has gone above and beyond in proving his capability in all of these roles. Seamless transitions between a younger and older version of Michael not only demonstrate this capability but give Into Temptation a cinematic edge where it could have felt like play piece. The film flourishes because of da Matta’s tactful and tasteful approach with this editing and an equally sublime script. It’s a hard-hitting and devasting experience, yet it never feels gratuitous in its depiction of predatory behaviour.

The lush cinematography from DP Matt Plaxco, combined with the inclusion of the Dutch angle adds a gothic flair to the proceedings and aptly creates a sense of claustrophobia. The inclusion of a Dutch angle also helps to mitigate an unusual choice of wide shots, which lends to a cold distance from the story.

Quinn da Matta demonstrates that passion can come in many forms and that when you tell a child they a special – they will believe you. Into Temptation dares to ask how growing up with a perverse kind of “love” can shape a person.

Film Festival | Phoenix Rising International Film Festival (priff.co.uk)

Tag: PRIFF

The Enlighten Heist, reviewed.

Perverse actions and ‘loving’ consequences