Ugandan import Crazy World is on another level than most action movies.

As little as I know about Ugandan cinema, it seems to be a shoestring industry interested in hyping the audience more than anything.  Take the case of Crazy World, a shoot-‘em-up, kung-fu movie from popular director IGG Nabwana.  The filmmaker (who earned viral fame in North America for 2010’s Who Killed Captain Alex?) offers movie goers a frantic flick that never takes a breath, and spackles any loose gaps with frantic commentary by VJ Emmie (the “World’s Greatest Tongue Fu Master).  The narration ranges from synchronized epiphanies the audience will have, to straight-up gushing about the movie (at one point, when a villain is bleeding out, VJ Emmie exclaims “the greatest kids movie ever”).

It’s all in good fun though.  And despite the film’s novelty wearing off on me (as if I was getting a stomach ache from eating too much candy), the resourcefulness and passion of IGG Nabwana’s insanity is impressive.  It’s also an easy story to cheer for (the Tiger Mafia and Uganda’s biggest crime boss Mr. Big meet their match when they kidnap ass-kicking children).  Crazy World crams a two-hour Hollywood action flick in 60 minutes, which could also be a statement on how gratuitous Hollywood can be.

It’s likely festival goers who attend a screening of Crazy World will remember the experience rather than the movie itself, which I think IGG Nabwana would happily accept.  Audiences should anticipate an off-the-wall mid-movie joke involving Uganda’s Piracy Patrol playfully chewing out a particular TIFF programmer for illegally watching the movie.

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Crazy World screens at TIFF on:

Saturday, September 14 at 11:59 p.m. @ Ryerson Theatre
Sunday, September 15 at 12:30 p.p. @ TIFF Bell Lightbox

Rating: 14A
Language: English
Runtime: 63 minutes

For more information on the festival, visit the official TIFF webpage here.

Buy tickets here.

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