Thomas Ngojil‘s Untamable (Quinzaine des Realisateurs / Director’s Fortnight) is aces. Ngojil directs and stars in a solid, tight, straightforward ensemble drama about Billong, a strictly moral, highly intelligent and demanding detective who not only plays it rough, tough and judgmental on the job, but also at home with his wife and five or six kids.
It’s basically a character study with a murder investigation (a fellow investigator shot in the back) driving the narrative.
Set in relatively poor, unpaved, hand-to-mouth Yaounde, Cameroon, which is fascinating, Untamable is rigorous, well-honed and 100% believable. Ii is unquestionably one of the three best films I’ve seen here so far, and I haven’t yet seen Jafar Panahi‘s It Was Just An Accident (or A Simple Accident), which is currently seen as a likely Palme d’Or winner.
And then there’s Joachim Trier‘s Sentimental Value, which I’m seeing tonight (Wednesday) at 10:30 pm.
