Julien Neaves, Caribbean Head Writer
For the final part of my five-part recap of Trinidad and Tobago’s Film and Folklore Festival October Fest 2024 (Caribbean Edition) I will be reviewing the second big winner of the festival, 2024 thriller short Cane Juice. Written by Darius Allen, directed by Antonio Diaz and produced by 3db Productions, the Trinidad and Tobago movie took home both Best Film and Best Director at the festival.
Plot: In this twisted take on Alice in Wonderland, a young photographer stumbles into an old sugarcane factory, and she discovers it is not as abandoned as it seems.
Review: A major milestone for the Trinidad and Tobago film industry would be to have a project on a streaming platform like Netflix, Max or Prime. And it is projects like Cane Juice that is are a strong indicator that that milestone will be reached at some point. I will readily admit that in terms of reviewers I am not the strongest when it comes to analysing technical aspects of filmmaking (my friend and fellow Trini reviewer Matthew Bailey over at BBB Radio is much better at that) but I can tell you that the production quality here is exceptionally high. The film combines breathtaking cinematography, strategic shot composition, confident sound and visual editing, and a clever use of lighting to craft a viewing experience that is equal parts enchanting and unsettling. And all of it is engrossing.
The film, which packs a lot into its runtime of just over 11 minutes, is told in two halves. The first half is bright, idyllic, sunny and whimsical, and the viewer may be fooled into believing they are watching a romcom or a coming-of-age drama. But the second half at the old sugarcane factory delves into much darker territory and delivers a creepy, gripping tension that is palpable.
Anyone familiar with Trinidadians would know that we would love to talk, but the Cane Juice creative team took the bold choice to have a film with no dialogue whatsoever. The plot, therefore, had to be carried by the audio, the visuals and the performance by actress/singer Hannah Abdool. Acting without the assistance of dialogue is not an easy feat, but Abdool delivers with her body movements and facial expressions. The audience knows nothing about this woman (not even her name) other than she likes to take photographs, but the actress is still able to give enough of a character that can be liked and sympathised with. And also, a character whose fate the audience can care about, which is key in this genre of film and an aspect in which several Hollywood horror/thriller films fail to deliver.
The story here is one that is almost deceptively simple, and it was only after processing the film after I watched it that I was able to figure out what had happened. I would have liked slightly more depth to the plot, and I believe that would have made the film more impactful, and therefore I had to dock a point from the score. I am keeping this review SPOILER FREE, so I will say no more. But I will say kudos to Diaz and his team for delivering an exceptional film and one that shows the Trinidad and Tobago film industry is only moving from strength to strength. Netflix, we comin’ jes now.
Editor Jules’ Score: 9 out of 10
And you can check out all the previous Film and Folklore Festival October Fest recap reviews below:
Julien “Editor Jules” Neaves is a TARDIS-flying, Force-using Trekkie whose bedroom stories were by the Cryptkeeper, learned to be a superhero from Marvel, but dreams of being Batman. I love promoting Caribbean film (Cariwood), creating board games and I am an aspiring author. I say things like “13 flavours of awesome sauce”. Read more.