FANTASIA 2021: Baby Money
FANTASIAOver the sounds of a beating heart, Minny (Danay Garcia) receives an ultrasound confirming her pregnancy. Wiping away her tears she turns to the nurse and says “I don’t know how we’re going to afford this.” Minny doesn’t want her baby’s father, Gil (Michael Drayer), in jail but without many financial prospects for either of them, Gil decides to join his friends for one last break-in, setting in motion one of the most emotional raw crime thrillers in recent times.
Naturally, the break-in goes south, sending Gil and his co-conspirator Tony (Travis Hammer) on the run. They find themselves hiding out in the home of Heidi (Taja V. Simpson), the nurse who happened to give Minny her ultrasound, and her son with cerebral palsy Chris (Vernon Taylor III). Tension rises quickly as the cops descend on the neighbourhood, leaving the crime duo desperate to make it out without getting caught.
Baby Money may not be the most original crime thriller however writer-director Mikhael Bassilli, along with co-writer MJ Palo deliver a fresh and raw script with mounting suspense in each new scene. Baby Money grows more intense as the characters grow more desperate. Bassili and co-director Luc Walpoth present the story over minimal set locations, the front seat of a car, a stool at a bar, a small house, further contributing to the tense and claustrophobic environment.
However, it is Baby Money’s characters that add gravitas to the film. Drayer and Hammer have wonderful comedic chemistry as the criminal duo, while Gil stays fair and calm, Tony breeds his fury as it becomes more likely they’ll be caught. Taylor as Chris also brings a wash of desperation over the story, his mother Heidi fearful of his palsy negatively affecting him throughout the hostage situation. Taylor also has cerebral palsy giving true realism to the character of Chris. The best characters in the film are the two women, Minny and Heidi. Garcia gives Minny a perfect amount of a mother’s love and desperation and so does Simpson for Heidi. The two characters are two sides of the same coin, desperate for the same thing but on opposing sides of the conflict. Simpson especially is a standout, the fear on her face throughout the film is so real, and especially chilling during scenes when she’s interacting with the cops, pretending that nothing is wrong.
Baby Money is a film about desperation, a film about doing whatever it takes to provide despite the high odds of drowning in the deep end. In the film’s minimalism, Baby Money’s characters are given the best opportunity to shine and truly connect with the audience. It is because of these characters that the intensity and tension of Baby Money feel real. Baby Money is a fresh take on the crime thriller genre and well-worth the watch.