Kati Kati

"Kati Kati" is a Kenyan drama film directed by Mbithi Masya. The film is about a young woman waking up in a small village with no memory of her life or who she is for that matter. She soon finds other people in this village which is called Kati Kati, it turns out that she's dead and all the people in the village are dead, and that's why they are there.

I saw this film at the 52nd International Film Festival this year and it was a very interesting and surreal film that had a lot to say and do but couldn't capture it in such a short run time.

The film has a very creative plot and story to begin with, you have these characters (4 central characters) who are very interesting and give very good performances. The film has a very spiritual vibe as it establishes this form of purgatory as a village that you literally cannot leave from. The characters have an agenda for the days of the week and always show love and care towards one another.

The story is very interesting but I couldn't help but feel that the film was very slow even though it's 75 minutes long. Certain plot points are not explained or given enough attention and are at times just tossed under the rug. Certain things that happen in the film don't really add up or have any reasoning to begin with. Now the film does take a right turn on you which was really cool because it opened up the story even more and made it much more powerful.

Overall "Kati Kati" is a very interesting film to watch, but I felt that there should've been more added to the film due to it feeling like there were pieces of the puzzle that were missing.

This is a short and bittersweet experience that is not desperate to be liked but has the courtesy not to over-stay its welcome.

There's been a trend of Cosmogonic comedies lately though this isn't a comedy. It reminded me of After Life (not the Rickie Gervaise thing, the other one) in both concept and tone.

Here, afterlife is a breezy low-key experience where there is nothing much to do but reflect and try to move on (or not).

It is charmingly sedate but it knows how to get serious.

It is perhaps because there are no wrong notes in its attempt to be small and perfectly formed that I have little more to say about it.

Not an aggressive or greatly stimulating experience but a strangely admirable one.

Kati kati is exceptional filmmaking tapping into a recent trend of creating worlds where the rules only become clear through time - films like like the lobster. Great script, well acted, beautifully shot, affecting and witty this is a poignant reflection on love and death.

The story is good but i think not that good enough. Of everything you think its about is just below that 1 star.