Live Cargo (2016) Reviews

• bad focal points

  tsimshotsui2017-04-02

  Live Cargo has interesting and relevant topics somewhere in there, but director Logan Sandler chooses to magnify the wrong ones. The film focuses on an interracial couple who just went through a tragedy, and, while in the process of grief, returns to the Bahamian island where the woman, Nadine (played by Dree Hemingway) grew up in. She apparently sort of grew up with the island's mayor (Roy). Lakeith Stanfield's character, Lewis, is uneasy in the island, and just wants to try to rekindle the flame with his wife. His wife is not quite ready though. The film spends most of the time with grieving Nadine. The more interesting story line involves Roy, a man called Doughboy, and news of the increasing number of lost and/or dead bodies in the ocean shared via radio. With all this, somehow we spend a lot of time with this young man called Myron (Sam Dillon). The film is difficult to get through. One reason is the consistently heavy tone with little essence to back it up. The director was also incapable of juggling all of these themes and story lines well. He spends way too long a time on the least interesting characters, thus spreading them too thin, and then leaving the more interesting parts unexplored and badly and/or too swiftly handled. I'm troubled with how the story about the couple ended, frankly: how we got there and how the filmmakers came up with that end point. It feels cheap and insulting. The cinematography by Daniella Nowitz is one of the high points of the film. Some stunning shots underwater were my favorite. Lakeith Stanfield is always great, and still way underused here. The lead credit is misleading. Robert Wisdom and Leonard Earl Howze were fantastic.

• Vivid Game Changer

  NewWaveCF42017-09-04

  Live Cargo dances to the beat of it's own drum. The film has a revolutionary approach toward cinema. Can't wait for the next film of this auteur. The sights and sounds of this film are beyond words. This film is required viewing for lovers of cinema. I very much wish I could have caught this film on the big screen, but needless to say the digital download looked spectacular on my TV at home.

• This is Cinema

  willwyattllc2017-05-23

  Enjoyed this piece of cinematic filmmaking quite a bit. Unique characters and well acted performances. It's a very fresh take on noir, in a rarely seen setting with a hint of Terrence Malick vibes. The storms throughout the film are magnificent and can't forget the underwater sequence with the shark!

• Intriguing worthwhile debut feature

  williamsmark-752412017-04-02

  I've watched live cargo twice! The film reminded me of Bela Tarr's work and the Art-house films of Gus Van Sant. There is not much dialogue. Moody, rhythmic and effectively hypnotic. By the half way point I felt like the images put me in a trance. The actors do a great job, especially the lesser known actors and what seem to be local non actors. What I like most about this movie is that it balances a surreal vibe within a world that is captured in a neo-realism fashion. The structure is unique and boldly refreshing, the last 30 minutes are very thrilling. The execution is mostly flawless, it certainly feels like the work of an auteur with a seasoned crew. Surprised to see that this is the directors first movie.

• Mythic & Surreal 1st Feature

  CinemaMatador52017-04-02

  Live Cargo is timeless. Loved this moody and mythic film. Although it is a tragedy, there is something very sexy about Live Cargo. The film seems to be layered in symbols and metaphors. It just as much a movie as it is a poem. That is not to say it was not thrilling. Their is some intriguing noir like elements embedded in the film. Some brilliant foreshadowing is trickled through out, but that is all that I will say in regards to that. Stunned to see that this was Logan Sandler (director + co-writer) first film. Wow, okay. Cinema is not dead! This new director could be become the bad boy of tropic cinema. Cinematographer Daniella Nowitz is surely on this rise after this. Loved Dree Hemingway as Nadine. Have not seen her in this big of a role since Starlet. She is ready for something major! I will say that this film feels a bit under the radar and with this type of vision, I would say that it is shamefully underrated / unknown. If you love cinema, then this will be a great viewing experience. This film is a lesson in thoughtful movie-making!