Incluvie Film Fest 3rd Place Winner: ‘Warmth’ Review
This film is a splendid mix of mediums, but its strength lies in its simplicity and beautiful message of closeness.

When Qing Cheng was a teenager, he was attacked by an unknown mutant monster and lost his family and memory. He was regarded by the villagers as an ominous person who would bring disaster. Ten years later, the mutant monsters resurfaced to sweep Cheng's village. Qing Cheng vaguely realized that these monsters were related to his lost memory. In order to save the village and retrieve his memory, Qing Cheng launched a desperate confrontation with the monsters. But what was unexpected was that there was someone behind the all this. A terrifying human experiment was unfolding in secret, and the whole village was involved in it, facing a catastrophe...
This film is a splendid mix of mediums, but its strength lies in its simplicity and beautiful message of closeness.
In the film adaptation, director Jon M. Chu turns each musical number into a massive show stopper, with grand set pieces and a wealth of diverse dancers. Yet, in this attempt to show reverence for the people of the Washington Heights barrio, Chu, or maybe more specifically those in charge of casting, left out a crucial part of the community, Afro-Latinos.
'Living' dives into many themes that we can all understand regardless of our cultural backgrounds. We can see this through the shared similarities between 'Ikiru' and 'Living'.
The second film takes us on Peter's journey to be understood.
It is up to the community to decide if this film is a force for enlightenment or not.
Dramatic Horror!!! Wait, what?? Did you say "dramatic horror"?? IS there such a thing?? I mean, TRULY. Well, if San Francisco-based, Pakistani-born independent filmmaker Dr. Hassan Zee and this film critic have anything to say about it, there IS such a beast as experienced through the director's newest feature film set to officially debut October 4th in the City by the Bay. Folks, indie film will always be a bastion of experimentation and originality, and this film for me fits that bill.