Author: Jack Ford

A Ya-dang is a type of police informant, who gets drug offenders to reveal information they then pass on to the authorities and prosecutors, for which the offender receives a reduced sentence for their cooperation, and any corrupt drug enforcement officers are prevented from obtaining such information by unethical means.

It seems the latter is as big a problem in South Korea as drug use itself, something professional Ya-dang Lee Kang-su knows all too well. He was imprisoned by a corrupt officer who injected him with methadone just to make an arrest, an act so callous it almost doesn’t sink in for Kang-su just how much he has been harshly acted against. Though he initially feels bleak and scared, prosecutor Ku Gwan-hee (Yoo Hae-jin) discovers Kang-su has a photographic memory and sees his potential in becoming a snitch. Kang-su agrees to learn and pass on information about one of his inmates’ dealings on the outside in return for an early release, which he does so well Ku encourages him to continue doing so once he is free.

So far, Yadang: The Snitch may sound heavily plotted, which it is, but while writer Kim Hyo-seok’s script may take some time to digest properly, it allows the story to unfold naturally instead of stopping to explain, making for more effective drama. South Korea has become known for its exports’ intricate plots and well-drawn character arcs, and while this film does not push the envelope as much as such other exports as Parasite or Kim’s last effort 12.12: The Day, it adds to the familiar and the interplay between plot and character development is interesting.

Anchoring Yadang: The Snitch is Squid Game‘s Kang Ha-neul in the lead role, delivering a central performance that is both charismatic and effectively transformative for how the character develops over the course of the film. When Kang-su lands in prison he is nervous and timid, doing what he can to survive in a situation he never expected to be in. Having control of his life taken from him early on, he assumes a new persona once back on the outside. Asserting control of every situation he finds himself in, he becomes far more poised and self-assured, swaggering around the streets and offices of Incheon, beaming with confidence.

Kang-su proves such an effective tool in the war on drugs that his service is highly sought after by other drug prosecutors looking to improve their arrest record, including the ruthless Yeom Tae-su (Yoo Seong-ju), but Kang-su has not let his morals slip and he remains loyal to Ku, the man who earned him his freedom. When a new drug, Blue Meth, hits the streets, Kang-su learns about a supplier holding a private party in his hotel room. He plans to infiltrate the party and obtain video evidence of them in the act himself.

At the same time, by-the-book narcotics cop Oh Sang-jae (Park Hae-joon) is working a case where where aspiring young actor Uhm Su-jin (Chae Won-bin) is caught in possession of Blue Meth. While he has no sympathy for addicts, he realizes it is better to eliminate the problem at the source. He offers Su-jin a deal to drop the charges against her in return for her going to the same party at the hotel and wearing a wire and getting evidence.

The plot starts to thicken, though, as there are some who, for reasons of their own, do not want this evidence getting out. Anyone who knows about what happened in that hotel room – namely Kang-su, Sang-jae and Su-jin – are kept from speaking out. This sees all their lives upended in very drastic ways and when their paths all come together a year later, they plot to bring those who have done them wrong to justice.

For it’s final third, Y:TS almost re-invents itself from a drug procedural to a composite film of Ocean’s Eleven meets Traffic. It’s a more breezy turn of events, but director Hwang Byeong-guk keeps the film at a brisk pace and holds the narrative divergences together with ease. That said, it does also fall into some unfortunate tropes that, which don’t spoil the film but does let down characters that have been built up so much. When one character dies, for example, it is affecting and sad but also disappointing because it feels unnecessary for them to end up only becoming motivation for the survivors.

It’s particularly frustrating because the most interesting component of Yadang: The Snitch is how the characters develop over the course of the film. Kang-su, for example, becomes increasingly bitter and erratic the more he keeps falling victim to a corrupt system, while Sang-jae’s morals are strengthened and he’s determined to show the system can work by exposing those who have done him wrong by the book. Most effective of all is Su-jin, who goes from being expressive and full of hope for her future to cynical and withdrawn.

This complicates Sang-jae’s feelings about her as a drug user, as he feels responsible for what has happened to her, though Su-jin seems to no longer be able to care about herself or what others feel for her. This is the greatest strength of Yadang: The Snitch, that it gives us well-crafted, interesting characters and sends them on a journey that takes a lot of different turns, but they make us want to see the journey through to its conclusion.

Mami Wata is a powerful water spirit of west and central African folklore, capable of causing natural disasters such as tidal waves and hurricanes if angered, but also can grant wishes to those who pay tribute to her.

The deity lends her name to the title of Nigerian writer/director C.J. “Firey” Obasi’s unmistakable feature, which walks the line between mystical and hard-hitting drama. A film like no other, Mami Wata is gorgeous to look at as well as a compelling real world story that is so direct and unflinching it might take a few goes to fully drink in. (Pun not intended)

The first thing to notice of Mami Wata is its striking visual style, a hyper-real monochrome where brighter shades look as if they almost shine among the much darker tones that surround them. Beneath the beautiful surface though is a multi-layered story that is not trying to win over mainstream audiences outside of Africa by watering down its mythos. (Again no pun intended)

Obasi creates a tone that feels both gritty and realistic but supernatural and unsettling, while always unquestionably a product of Nigeria, down to the characters mostly speaking West African Pigdin. The mythology is not over-simplified and the imagery is not compromised, it’s a film that forces you to engage with it on its own terms.

It starts off very Avatar: The Way of Water, set in the seaside village of Iyi, whose inhabitants worship Mami Wata under the guidance of matriarchal priestess Mama Efe (Rita Edochie). Her unwavering belief in what Mami Wata provides is reinforced by her daughter Zinwe (Uzoamaka Aniunoh). Emerging from the waves as a baby, she was found and adopted by Mama Efe, who believed she was a gift from Mami Wata in return for her devotion to the aquatic deity.

Not everyone shares the elder’s viewpoint however, including her young protege Prisca (Evelyne Ily Juhen). When villagers become unwell she tries to have medicine brought to the village, only to be denied by Mama Efe, who instead says the stricken should stick to prayer instead, with no success.

The divison in Iyi runs even deeper however, with a band of rebels becoming restless after giving tribute to Mami Wata but received nothing back, while also noticing that neighbouring villages are far more modernized and prosperous. There is a plot to overthrow Mama Efe, accelerated by the arrival of an outsider, Jasper (Emeka Amakeze), who at first gets close with Prisca but then sees his chance at greater power and makes himself leader of the rebel insurgents.

Things start to take a predictable turn and it’s not long before the village sees an escalation in violence and subjection of its women. Jasper promises new things for Iyi – hospitals and schools among others – but soon his promises fall by the wayside.

Mama Efe then becomes a target of the rebels along with Zinwe, whom they want to make an example of, to prove whether or not she was gifted to the village from Mami Wata herself. Prisca is left torn by her desire to improve the situation in Iyi, but more wanting to protect her mentor and prevent violence and subjection of women by the rebels out to seize power.

The film builds to a tense finale, which works also as a metaphor for the subjection of women, who are treated poorly in Iyi but raises internal questions about how that is changing in the world right now. Obasi’s script encapsulates everything that rural women of Africa have had to live under for decades and decades, but the film is the farthest from preachy as it is possible to be.

Mami Wata works just as well as a story about this one village and exploring much bigger ideas at its core. It’s biggest message is one of peace and people living together despite their differences, everyone having the same access to medicine and education. Though it is a film about a small part of the world, it can speak to us all in different ways.

Heroes of the Golden Mask is the latest co-production between the USA and China, which attempts to merge the sensibilities of each and maximise appeal in the two biggest film markets on the planet.

This practice has produced some uneven results in recent times, but while Arcana Studios’ CGI animated fantasy is clearly trying to tick all the boxes for both hemispheres, writer/director Sean Patrick O’Reilly fills it with enough energy and artistry to keep it engaging and entertaining for younger audiences – as well as a few older ones as well.

Part of where the film suceeds is the presence of some big-name actors who are able to lend some gravitas to their respective characters. In particular, what initially seems like a silly, throwaway cameo here now has newfound poignancy; the film’s mafiosa character, Rizzo, marks the final screen performance of the late Christopher Plummer, more than two years after his death.

Also providing vocals for HOTGM is Ron Freaking Perlman, of course playing the villain, but his natural charisma and menace goes a long way. His character, Kunyi, is out to sieze control of the ancient Chinese kingdom Sanxingdui by way of stealing the powerful Jade Blade, which will make him invincible. Honour-bound to stop him are the eponymous heroes, who are each embued with a unique power given to them by the golden masks they wear.

Patton Oswalt voices one of the heroes, Aesop, who hails from Atlantis and who has the power of super strength. The others heroes are Zuma, a Mayan with control over flying orbs; Zu, who can shape shift into animals of the Chinese Zodiac; Li, whose mask gives her super archery powers; and Jiahao, their leader and Li’s father. When Jiahao dies in battle, Li sets out to find the next bearer of his mask, which takes her back in time to an unnamed city in modern-day America.

There the mask leads her to Charlie (Kiefer O’Reilly), a wise-cracking young squatter who lives off what he steals from others on the street. At this point the film starts resembling Kung Fu Panda, but without the panda: Li brings Charlie with her to Sanxingdui, where he shows no interest in being a hero and the others doubt his capacity to do so. He has to learn how to accept his destiny and believe that he is more than what he and everyone else sees him to be.

While Heroes of the Golden Masks doesn’t push any boundaries of animation or storytelling, it does each well enough to prop up its tried-and-tested plot of a reluctant anti-hero saving an earnest land in peril. The younger audiences it is broadly aimed at will surely find it an entertaining diversion, but will also be able to recognise there isn’t anything here that hasn’t been done before.

The animation is clean but uninspired, at best able to create some beautiful imagery and draw us in to the action. At a brisk eighty minutes, the film maintains an energetic pace with some exciting set pieces, including battles against mud monsters; a flight across a sea of clouds; and a big, sprawling battle sequence where the heroes fend off Kunyi’s army. That said the story does resolve itself a little too quickly (and seems to be trying to set up sequel possibilities).

It is HOTGM‘s more American elements that are the weakest: the film is about Charlie’s growth, but as a protagnoist Po the Panda he is not; he is somewhat bland and his snarky, sarcastic humour becomes tiresome early on. Similarly, Aesop has all the traits of your typical Patton Oswalt character, down to the fact he lives with his mother.

Elsewhere the Chinese aspects of HOTGM are given more care and attention and can be the more compelling. (Li, for instance, makes for a more interesting and better defined character than Charlie.) It will be intriguing, then, to see how those moments aimed at the west will play out with western viewers, given they feel the most stilted.

Unlike the film this is clearly trying to be, at no point during Cocaine Shark does any aquatic creature ingest an illegal substance. The “cocaine” and “shark” mentioned in the title are present, but are completely seperate elements. How did they manage to blow that premise?

Its marketing technique is one we are seeing more of: hyping an outlandish premise with the aim of going viral and gaining plenty of free publicity. Cocaine Shark is a particularly aggregious offender as, after suckering us in, it gives back very little.

What wet get instead of the drug-crazed shark we turned up for is boring and not possible to follow or care about. The plot involves an undercover narcotics cop tasked to infiltrate the inner circle of a drug lord who is supplying a gene-editing serum to the black market – one which creates a mutant shark which causes some havoc along the way.

Further hampering a weak story that’s not even related to its premise is a lousy script, which is delivered even more lousily, and truly terrible presentation. Cocaine Shark has the aesthetic of a ten-year-old’s home movie made in their garden using their parents’ camcorder. It is so obviously made in such haste in order to jump on the Cocaine Bear bandwagon while it’s still rolling, it’s not unreasonable to think those involved are not filmmakers or actors, but just people trying to cash in.

This seventy-minute cringe fest is shot largely in close-up, presumably to hide what the production values (what little there are), and has sound design describable only as unforgiveable. Its creature effects are clunky, gaps in the narrative are filled by stock footage and all sound effects will be familiar to anyone who has ever used Windows Movie Maker. Ed Wood would have been proud, but the rest of us may start thinking about ingesting something just to get through it.