Film Review – Moka

The agony of personal loss inspires unique reactions to revenge in “Moka,” the latest from director Frederic Mermoud (“Accomplices”). While other productions generally head in a “Taken” direction, using the inner fire of a parent in the throes of grief to burn the screen, “Moka” plays a different kind of game. It’s a largely psychological study of a restless mother who needs to feel vengeance to feel anything at all, and Mermoud treats the material (an adaptation of a novel by Tatiana De Rosnay) with care, tending to intimate emotions and subtle shocks to the system. The feature is suspenseful, outstandingly so at times, but it doesn’t indulge bloodlust, taking a far more disorientating route to a sense of satisfaction, and doing so with terrific performances from stars Emmanuelle Devos and Nathalie Baye.  Read the rest at Blu-ray.com