We’re usually incredibly skeptical of the award winners at festivals such as TIFF, and this goes doubly so for winners of programs such as Discovery. There is little criteria by which to go by, (what’s the objective measure for a Discovery film?) and there have been some duds selected in the past. Therefore it is with great pride that we can say that Kati Kati is the real deal. And then some, the film is absolutely tremendous.

One wonders what sort of influence producers Tom Twyker and Marie-Steinmann Twyker had on Mbithi Masya, (Twyker’s own films haven’t been that strong recently), but if it was just to finance and help the film get made, it is worth it. Masya is a force with which to be reckoned, as the film works well as a sci-fi film, as a story of the past and as a relationship drama. It just works. Musical and lyrical, the film is a discovery of the highest order and will hopefully receive theatrical distribution or it would be an absolute shame.

[star v=45]