KING CAR

Ninho is that everyteen whose personal dreams and goals clash with his stern father’s own unwritten rule that he will follow in the family taxi business footsteps. You’d think a career with cars would be Ninho’s divine purpose since he can talk to cars, even making friends with the car that saved him from an accident as a child. But Ninho’s heart is drawn to Brazil’s ecological preservation, working to save the land and help the community living there. Since losing his mother at a young age, Ninho has been considering what his legacy will be, and driving a taxi and fixing cars just isn’t enough to satiate his ambition.

When his eccentric Uncle Zé Macaco (Matheus Nachtergaele) figures out how to upgrade old cars, circumventing the law that bans cars over fifteen years old from the roads, Ninho’s two worlds meet: sustainability and his community’s survival. But the unintended costs echo imagery you’ve surely seen in works such as HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE WITCH.

KING CAR is a bit off the beaten path in regards to sci-fi as it leans much more into magical realism. Its genre-blending journey has an endearing energy that doubles as a glimpse into how local policies can ultimately suppress and embolden a community’s working class. It is an engaging political sci-fi thriller with appeal for a variety of palettes. (ASHLEE BLACKWELL)