by Joseph Davis, Contributing Writer
I’ve mentioned before that I enjoy a good slow-burn movie — something that doesn’t necessarily have fast paced action, but is at the same time compelling. It’s a type of movie that I greatly enjoy diving into, as they tend to have a way to build to something enjoyable or surprising. This is what I searched for this time around for Out of Market, and while looking I found a 2022 Columbian film by the name The Kings of the World. Winner of numerous film festival awards, including the Golden Shell front the San Sebastian Film Festival, this film intrigued me greatly based on its premise. So I took a dive into it and found the slow-burn I was looking for.
First off, this film is absolutely beautiful to look at. You have some downright beautiful shots of the Columbian interior, and several moments where the shot is centered in the perfect way for the area around the main cast to feel framed and centered in the view. In some cases, it provides an effect that feels mystical in a way, and others allow for the viewer to focus on one part of the screen, while blending the view around the focus to be like a painting. There are also long periods where the characters don’t say anything, and the scenery and set is the forefront of the film, which I’m perfectly happy to see because it is a lot of fun to watch. That, and both the angle and the way the shots are filmed, show a good mix of who the characters are: people who are too young to be in the position they are in, and who, at times, act like the kids they are, while also making decisions people their age shouldn’t have to make.
This movie also does a great job with its characters. Its main cast is young — the oldest character states their age at 19 years old — all of whom are portrayed as living in the slums of the city before they begin their journey to the lands of his family taken away before he knew it. Both in terms of the moments when the characters talk to each other and when the only language being put forth is body language, you get an idea of who each character is. Each has their own life and wishes, and each has joined this unlikely family in their own way. You truly begin to understand who they are through the film; their goals and motivations feel clear not just in their words, but more so in the way they move and hold themselves. It’s phenomenal acting on the part of the cast, and makes the movie even better.
In short, if you are like me and enjoy a film that’s a slow-burn through the majority of the movie, and which still leaves you wondering what happens next, The Kings of the World would very much be something up your alley. The acting performances are phenomenal, each beat of the film feels like it belongs, and it has a hint of mysticism that hits right when it needs to. Not only that, but it’s one of the most well shot films I’ve seen for the Out of Market series, and I honestly would love to see more from this cast and this director.
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