Review of Goodbye Solo (2009) by Kasa C — 15 May 2009

A truly outstanding piece of cinema, this was the best thing I saw at the Little Rock Film Festival this year. With well-drawn characters, beautifully simple cinemotography, and an achingly powerful script, this movie is a reminder of how wonderfully poetic movies can be when they are about people, and not plots.

Mr. Bahrani is certainly a talent to watch. His ability to quietly look into these diverse characters is noteworthy, as well as giving the film a magically hypnotic pace. The two leads, Souleymane Sy Savane and Red West, deliver Oscar-worthy performances.

Sy Savane is a star in the making, with a difficult role that he nails with aplomb. He is the life of the movie. West does so much with saying so little. As we learn more about his mysterious character, the stronger our interest grows.

The ending, much debated, worked well for me and I walked out of this movie reinvigorated by the art of film, and touched by these characters. "Goodbye Solo" is a special, rare kind of film.

It's a shame it's not playing at as many theatres as disgustingly inferior Hollywood blockbuster crapfests do.