Inheritance

I enjoyed how the camera was weld for this film. Other reviewers I've read seem displeased by the "held camcorder" style, however I found this attempt to be a different and fresh way to use it. For instance, the shots of how pedestrians looked at the main character as she's walking through the streets. It focused on how others perceive her rather than how she perceived her surroundings. Which for the India sequences was true to form. The men are known to gawk at American women and cat call them profusely. Also, never have I felt like an actual tourist to to the many different countries visited in the movie. The tone, pace, shots, extras, and all together vibe made me feel as if I was actually visiting the pyramids in Egypt, travels a train through India, and walked the streets of South Korea. I watch a lot of film and never have felt what it must be like to be a tourist in the locations the movie was at.

This director also made Limitless, one of my all time guilty pleasure. The movie is better than what they say, I was on the edge of my couch for the first hour, it's more than can be said than most blockbusters these days, and cost not much to make by the look of it. Then, just like Limitless, the whole thing becomes improbable towards the end, any suspension of disbelief will be tested. Special mention to the chick, what a talent! Watch this on a rainy day and if nothing else, you'll be grateful you're not runing from Interpol in the slum Delhi. If you pay attention in the end credits you'll get the info that reveals how much is the inheritance.

Using only iPhones for filming definitely gives this project a unique flavour, a distinctive identity, especially from a filmmaking perspective.

All the events come across as raw, the moments feel unfiltered, making scenes resemble more of a vlog you would find on someone's YouTube channel rather than a traditional movie meant for theaters and home entertainment.

However, it falls short in all other facets.

There's lack of real tension, screenplay is pretty bland, and it misses that sense of stakes and intensity. Plus, I just didn't feel invested in the characters or the journeys they had to take.

After her mother's funeral. Maya (Phoebe Dynevor) gets a chance to connect with her estranged father Sam (Rhys Ifans.)

He offers to take her to Egypt where he claims to work in real estate. Even asking Maya to get a job to entice people to launder money in property.

However Sam disappears and is later contacted by people who claim to have abducted him.

They want Maya to retrieve a hard disk from a safe deposit box in India.

It leads her to question just who her father is. He had a false passport, previously worked in espionage and Interpol are also after him.

Directed by Neil Burger on an Iphone. This is a guerilla thriller shot in Egypt, India and South Korea without permits. Some task in India as the cops like to have their backhanders even if you have all the proper paperwork.

Once the post production grading is done, the film looks quite good. Although it could be better lit.

The story is hackneyed. You sense Maya is being used by her father. The international locales add to the movie.

Inheritance is the new thriller by the talented Mr. Burger with an international setting which was shot with an iPhone.

The film was fun in parts, with an interesting premise and a tense chasing scene being the highlights.

Unfortunately i found the writing lazy with stereotypical characters, predictable twists and a "gotcha" finale that you can see coming from miles away.

What i didn't "get" also was the "shot with an iPhone" choice. It didn't add anything new in the handheld camera style cinematography. On the contrary, the image quality on the big screen, especially during the dark scenes and scenes with high contrast was problematic and distracting, looking cheap instead of realistic.

I would recommend this film, if you don't have anything more interesting to see.