March 29, 2024
The Brothers Dardenne have made another exceptional feature.

Courtney Howard // Film Critic

TORI AND LOKITA

Not Rated, 1 hour and 28 minutes

Directed by: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne

Starring: Pablo Schils, Joely Mbundu, Alban Ukaj, Nadège Ouedraogo, Marc Zinga

The films of writer-directors Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne carry a high standard of greatness. Known for their evocative style, deeply felt characters and unfussy filmmaking techniques, the brothers’ work is a precious gift to behold. While they have delivered less than thrilling entries in the past few years, they have come roaring back with the memorable thriller TORI AND LOKITA. It marks their best, most riveting feature since TWO DAYS, ONE NIGHT. A humane and heartbreaking story about friendship set against the backdrop of scalding social injustice, it’s a must-see.

17-year-old Benin immigrant Lokita (Joely Mbundu) is struggling to survive in Belgium while taking care of scrappy 12-year-old Tori (Pablo Schils), whom she considers her brother even though he’s from Cameroon. The pair are on their own, trying to earn a living wage and gain work papers. Though Tori has gotten his, Lokita is desperate for hers in order to become a private home caretaker. However, thanks to Belgium’s strict bureaucracy, she’s denied access and has turned to dealing weed for abusive Italian chef Betim (Alban Ukaj). She’s also being shaken down by the nefarious human traffickers (played by Nadège Ouedraogo and Marc Zinga) who smuggled her into the country.

One day, Betim gives Lokita an offer she can’t refuse: stay in his boss’ remote, secret marijuana grow house, tending to the plants for a few weeks, to earn generous monetary compensation and coveted work papers. Though she’s hesitant to take a job that would pull her away from Tori, it’s her best shot at a life away from this pressure and heartache. But things soon go pear-shaped. After being blindfolded and taken to the hide-away, she’s introduced to inhumane accommodations and told she can’t communicate with Tori while there. To make matters worse, she learns her stay will be an extended one. As she tries to focus on the work, Tori quickly figures out a plan – one that could rid both of them of any further anguish.

Pablo Schils and Joely Mbundu in TORI AND LOKITA. Courtesy of Sideshow and Janus Films.

The Dardennes pace the picture perfectly, as the titular protagonists’ conflicts escalate like water coming to a boil. These characters’ smart, calculated decisions to lift themselves out of their circumstances are met with toil and trouble, leading to bleak scenarios and clever drama. Their relationship is tender and touching. Tori’s break-in at Lokita’s location has all the tension and grit of a MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE movie minus the heavy gloss. And their attempts to think ahead and turn the tables on the captors, though childishly naive, are pretty shrewd for their age.

With the exception of Tori’s careless bike-riding (a set-up that keeps the audience on high alert for a potential callback that never occurs), the filmmakers’ careful use of foreshadowing propels the picture. And that’s what makes the film incredibly fascinating and engaging. They’ve taken real, resonant situations, dramatized them in their unique, trademark manner and left indelible cinema in their wake.

Grade: A

TORi AND LOKITA is Now Playing in theaters in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Philadelphia, San Diego. It opens in Chicago and Portland, OR on April 7.

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