The Rocket

Australian Kim Mordaunt’s impressive feature debut is already internationally acclaimed and has won multiple awards including at the 2013 Berlin Film Festival, the Tribeca Film Festival, the Sydney Film Festival and the Melbourne International Film Festival.

This visually stunning movie was filmed in Thailand and Laos, both locations known for their breathtaking natural beauty, but also for their third world poverty, danger and death. Kim Mordaunt continues the work he started with his 2007 documentary Bomb Harvest, which dealt with the process of bomb disposal and the thousands of unexploded warheads that still threaten the country. With The Rocket, Mordaunt add to the country’s story that of Laos’ substantial environmental problems due to commercial exploitation of the forests and water resources.

The film opens with the birth of Ahlo (Sitthiphon Disamoe), the only survivor of twins. But twins, according to Laotian superstition, are thought to be highly problematic, one bringing good luck, the other bad. So when his family is forced to leave their village to make way for a massive water dam, the 10 year old Ahlo is blamed for the disaster. Along with his family, he must escape through a land scarred by war in search of a new home. Desperate to prove his value to his family and community, Ahlo enters a rocket-building competition in the hopes of taking home the big cash prize.

Crowd-pleasers come in many sizes, and there might not be a bigger crowd-pleaser this year than The Rocket. Mordaunt truly captures Laos’ determination to rise above its wartime legacy, and a boy’s determination to rise above his curse. Disamoe’s (Ahlo) performance is simply terrific. He effortlessly reflects the country’s cheerful and chaotic spirit. This is a movie with wonderful performances and a charm that is difficult to ignore. Expect to hear a lot more about Mordaunt in the near future.

@reelasian

Christophe Chanel

Awards:

Crystal Bear for Best Feature (Generation KPlus section), Best First Feature, Amnesty International— Berlin International Film Festival 2013

Best Narrative Feature Film, Heineken Audience Award, Best Actor in Narrative Feature Film—Sitthiphon Disamoe—Tribeca Film Festival 2013

Audience Award for Best Feature— Sydney Film Festival 2013

People’s Choice for Best Feature— Melbourne International Film Festival 2013

Also at the Reel Asian Film Festival Tales From the Dark and Don’t Stop Believin: Everyman’s Journey