I am not one for political movies as I don’t follow political landscapes in any way shape or form. I follow enough to understand North American landscapes, but anything past that and I am a deer in headlights when it comes to what is happening. What I can confirm, though, with Bruno Mourral’s (Kafou) Kidnapping Inc., is that there is a political message throughout the movie (it may come from some personal experience as a brief read up on Mourral and the movie itself shows that his crew was kidnapped during filming) but it is delicately balanced with comedy which works tenfold. However, the comedy takes away from the overall movie cowritten by himself, Jasmuel Andri (Kafou), and Gilbert Mirambeau Jr. (Kafou) as several of the characters are underwritten, but, overall, the chaotic journey filled with laughs and seriousness works out, for the most part, in the audience’s favor.
L-R: Jasmuel Andri as Doc and Rolaphton Mercure as Zoe in KIDNAPPING INC. Photo courtesy of Fantasia International Film Festival.
The movie focuses on Doc and Zoe (Jasmuel Andri and Rolaphton Mercure, respectively). They’re kidnappers, and they kidnapped Benjamin Perralt Jr. (Patrick Joseph) for no other reason than to hold him for ransom and to make his father sweat. Why? Because his father, Senator Benjamin Perralt Sr. (Ashley Laraque) is running for Haiti’s presidency and they don’t want him to win. After a very quick exchange while having issues with their jalopy of a car, Jr. accidentally dies and Doc and Zoe’s misadventures truly take off. What should’ve been an easy snatch-and-grab (think Abigail (2024) but different) turns into a second kidnapping, backroom deals, lovers and affairs, and the police. What more could possibly happen is explored throughout the chaos of Kidnapping Inc..
To say that the narrative is a lot is an understatement. The premise itself is easy to follow and execute, it’s the three writers who create too many twists, turns, and chaotic adventures for the characters to find themselves in for the audience to focus on the general story, which gets lost along the way. It all comes to an insane halt when Doc and Zoe find a look-alike to pose as the kidnappee, his wife, Laura (Gessica Généus). She joins the antics and creates more chaos which unfolds throughout the journey.
L-R: Gessica Généus as Laura and Jasmuel Andri as Doc in KIDNAPPING INC. Photo courtesy of Fantasia International Film Festival.
While there is a lot going on and unfolding in the story, this feels like it would’ve benefited from a chapter breakdown, and considering it feels heavily inspired by Tarantino, this might have been discussed. Separating each of the misadventures and characters into their own chapters which would’ve been interconnected and eventually tied everything together, ala Pulp Fiction (1994) may have made for a more coherent and cohesive story. There just was not enough tying this together to create a story for the audience to truly get behind and care about.
However, the direction from Bruno Mourral is exceptional as the shots and framing look great throughout the feature. Maybe his hand is better on the camera than the pen, but again, with three writers, its unsure whose contributions were whose. Overall, the general complicatedness of the script muddles the overall journey for the audience, but there is a saving grace — the performances throughout the feature.
L-R: Patrick Joseph as Patrick and Gessica Généus as Laura in KIDNAPPING INC. Photo courtesy of Fantasia International Film Festival.
The two at the center of all of this, Jasmuel Andri (Kafou) playing the gang-banger who’s on his last job, and Rolaphton Mercure (Kafou) playing the loose canon, do incredibly well bringing a level of comedy and enjoyment to the film that makes it reach new heights. With the added performance from Gessica Généus (Cargo) and those from the rest of the supporting cast, no matter how much screentime they got, bring Kidnapping Inc. to an enjoyable though muddled affair. Kidnapping Inc. packs a punch of laughter, but too many detours and character direction changes make for a messy, crayon-covered map to follow.
Screened during Fantasia International Film Festival 2024.
For more information, head to the official Fantasia International Film Festival 2024 Kidnapping Inc. webpage.
Final Score: 3.5 out of 5.
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Categories: In Theaters, Reviews
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