Title: MFKZ (Mutafukaz)
Director: Shojiro Nishimi, Guillaume Renard
Writers: Guillaume Renard
Music: Guillaume Houze
Studio: Ankama, Studio 4°C
Distrbutor: GKids
MFKZ can be downright gruesome. It’s violent, clichéd, and perhaps a little misogynistic. After watching it I am conflicted to my very core, because I honestly enjoyed the hell out of it and I really want to see it again. The story basically follows young Angelino, or Lino to his friends, as he goes about a meager and uninspired existence in Dark Meat City, an exaggerated parallel of inner city Los Angeles. An unexpected traffic accident thrusts Angelino into a grandiose sci-fi conspiracy that threatens to not only tear apart his home, but ultimately destroy the entire world. Will he rise to face his destiny as a superhuman savior, or fall to the machinations of a secretive extraterrestrial conclave intent on subverting humanity and claiming earth as its own?
I’ll be the first to admit that a fair amount of embellishment should be expected everywhere in the realm of cinema. While the real LA and surrounding counties have a history of gang related violence and brutally excessive law enforcement engagement, the depictions in MFKZ do little to further the conversation around solving these issues in any meaningful way. The economic devastation and existential misery are simply affectations, painted in broad strokes to ensure that the world we are visiting is familiar enough to support the further suspension of disbelief. That these caricatures lend the narrative any credibility does more harm than good where representation is concerned.
Unsurprisingly, representation of women is also limited in the film. I can only recall two named female characters, and depictions of them exercising anything resembling personal autonomy are sorely lacking. That’s not an observation based around any agenda other than seeking substantive character development. Male or female, characters matter when we have a reason to care about them. In adapting his Mutafukaz comic to an animated feature, Guillaume Renard’s omissions around these particular characters are indeed apparent. The writing and art teams have very apparently put so much effort into cultivating this world, but the characters that are front and center are remarkably flat and uninteresting; save maybe for RZA’s Shakespeare, the M60 toting gang leader who only speaks in Shakespearean quotes.
Though MFKZ stumbles in both its fetishization of urban poverty and violence and in representation of women, the film is not totally without merit. Themes of perseverance and loyalty in the face of insurmountable odds are notable, and Renard’s persistent jabs on topics ranging from climate change and xenophobia to police brutality and media brainwashing are timely. He has a lot to say about his perception of America, though the film tends to vacillate wildly between attempts at more subtle satire and full on parody. The animation really is the star here, with stylistic flourishes borrowed from anime heavyweights like the seminal Akira and the more recent Tekkon Kinkreet, also by Studio 4°C. Detail oozes from every frame, injecting a abiding familiarity into the proceedings. The soundtrack melds hip hop and EDM sensibilities relatively well, and only further elevates the engrossing sensory experience.
In summation, Muthafukaz is depressing as hell and the characters are not easy to like. I’m not entirely sure why I enjoyed it so much, because my gripes are sound and numerous. The film is not about a place I would ever want to be and concerns characters I do not love, but the music is infectious, the existential dilemma is relatable, and the art is excellent. The elaborate detail does manage to ground the world building in a manner that renders some of the more gut-wrenching violence gratuitous, and I wish more trust had been put in the visuals to bear that responsibility versus pushing for shock value. It really kind of exemplifies the whole “greater than the sum of its parts” idea, as long as you don’t mind the Tarantino meets Dark City meets . . . Joe’s Apartment vibe. It’s a wild and strange ride, but one absolutely worth taking if pure, unadulterated bonkers is your thing. I don’t usually do this, but if I had to put a number on it I would say 3/5.
Christian Davenport
Cable201@comicattack.net
