The Movie Pit
SWEET KARMA - (2009)
Directed by :
Andrew Thomas Hunt
Written by:
James Fler
Andrew Thomas Hunt
TMP RATING: 3/5
MPAA:
Rated R for strong violent content including rape, sexual material, nudity, language and some drug use
Cast
Shera Bechard ... Karma Balint
John Tokatlidis ... William
Frank J. Zupancic ... Stefan
Christian Bako ... Tomas
Laura McLean ... Mavra
Patricia Stasiak ... Anna Balint
Lana Koseniv ... Galina
Mark Wiebe ... Peter
Steve Richard ... Peaches
Adam Tomlinson ... Skinny Boy
Brent Crawford ... David Grey
Tanya Rusnak ... Franciska
Sasha Kovacs ... Redhead
Anna Beben ... Blondie
Elitsa Bako ... Brunette
REVIEW:
A mute Russian girl infiltrates Toronto's underground sex trade to avenge the death of her sister.
This movie starts off, and from the get go, I could tell this was a lower budget movie. Mainly from the quality of the video I was seeing. This movie was made in 2009 and it looked almost as if it was shot on dv tape...and for all I know, it could've been.
But I am going to try and let it not influence my judgement on this movie. And I must be honest, I liked where the story was heading from the very beginning. It's a female revenge story, that is very clear. And the violence, and revenge start up very quickly, but them it tappers off for a bit.
Being that it is about Russian woman sold to a group of men for either exotic dancing and prostitutes, it's easy to feel remorse for the characters. Even that of Karma, who has lost her sister and wants revenge.
But the story eventually takes some interesting twists and turns, and doesn't necessarily end up where I was anticipating or would have liked to see it go.
The actual shining point in this movie is the acting of all things. One would think with a low-budget revenge flick like this, that the acting would be horrendous, but it is actually one of the better aspects of many films of this nature.
Granted, the lead actress is mute, so she doesn't have a lot to say. Some might think that this gives this actress the easier job, but in all actuality only being able to portray a performance through body language, is a whole lot harder then if she was actually able to speak. So this actress gets mass kudos from me.
The look and quality of this film is the movies downfall. It is very low-quality and grainy. And that stems from the fact that it looks like they didn't use any lighting of any kind...outside of natural lighting. And that normally is a huge no-no for me, and it is here as well. However, for this film I have to say, it actually works. I actually can't believe I'm saying that, but it didn't take me out of the story. Outside of all that shit, the movie is put together nicely, and that is where it had a professional feel to it.
Overall, this an entertaining film, and in the long run, that is what everyone's after. This will be a film that isn't for everyone, and should be tread upon lightly. Because it touches on things that some people might be easily offended over. And the fact that it is so low-budget, it puts a huge target on this films back for people to complain about it. So watch at your own risk.
Till Next Time Kiddies...
-RJ