DVD Review - Kasbah
This is an interesting little film from Spanish director Mariano Barroso. It takes place in Morocco where Mario (Ernesto Alterio) works in a Spanish-Moroccan business. He is quite successful but after five years he feels the need to return to Spain. He has made arrangements to leave the next day but something happens to change his plans.
He receives a fax from his boss saying that his daughter Laura (Elena Ballesteros) is coming to Morocco and he wants Mario to show her around the city. Even though he has his mind on other things Mario has to comply. He picks Laura up at noon but finds out that her boat arrived two hours earlier. Before he gets to Laura he meets a woman named Alix (Natalia Verbeke) who was on the same boat. Alix will figure into the story later on. Laura has her own car so she follows Mario to his home. During the drive Mario accidentally kills a sheep that belonged to a local shepherd. Mario later finds out that a person who kills a sheep is considered cursed.
The next day Mario and Laura go to a local market. While Mario buys a souvenir to take back to Spain Laura disappears. Needless to say Mario is frantic. Laura's mother and father arrive the next day and they implicate him in Laura's disappearance. Mario is determined to clear his name and embarks on a dangerous road trip in order to find Laura. What he doesn't know is that Laura's father has hired a viscous man named Rodrigo (the great Jose Sancho) to follow him.
The movie held my interest even though some of what happens is predictable. Early on we find out the "secret" of Mario's relationship with his family. I think that it would have been wise for Barosso to wait until later in the film to share that information with us. It would have made the film more intriguing. There is some exploration of the West's disdain for Arabs but the film doesn't go deep enough. All of the acting is fine and Sancho in particular stands out. The scenery is lovely to look at and the music is terrific. I have seen a number of Barroso's films and I have to say that this is the one that I liked the least. But all in all I am happy that I saw it. When someone interests me (actor, actress, director, etc.) I want to see as much of their work as possible. And I can certainly think of worse ways to spend 90 minutes.
He receives a fax from his boss saying that his daughter Laura (Elena Ballesteros) is coming to Morocco and he wants Mario to show her around the city. Even though he has his mind on other things Mario has to comply. He picks Laura up at noon but finds out that her boat arrived two hours earlier. Before he gets to Laura he meets a woman named Alix (Natalia Verbeke) who was on the same boat. Alix will figure into the story later on. Laura has her own car so she follows Mario to his home. During the drive Mario accidentally kills a sheep that belonged to a local shepherd. Mario later finds out that a person who kills a sheep is considered cursed.
The next day Mario and Laura go to a local market. While Mario buys a souvenir to take back to Spain Laura disappears. Needless to say Mario is frantic. Laura's mother and father arrive the next day and they implicate him in Laura's disappearance. Mario is determined to clear his name and embarks on a dangerous road trip in order to find Laura. What he doesn't know is that Laura's father has hired a viscous man named Rodrigo (the great Jose Sancho) to follow him.
The movie held my interest even though some of what happens is predictable. Early on we find out the "secret" of Mario's relationship with his family. I think that it would have been wise for Barosso to wait until later in the film to share that information with us. It would have made the film more intriguing. There is some exploration of the West's disdain for Arabs but the film doesn't go deep enough. All of the acting is fine and Sancho in particular stands out. The scenery is lovely to look at and the music is terrific. I have seen a number of Barroso's films and I have to say that this is the one that I liked the least. But all in all I am happy that I saw it. When someone interests me (actor, actress, director, etc.) I want to see as much of their work as possible. And I can certainly think of worse ways to spend 90 minutes.
posted by Film Fanatic | 8:13 PM
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