What lengths would you go to to make sure your kids were taken care of? What would you do? Would you take on a job as a grim reaper? That’s what Daniel finds himself grappling with in Ba.
Synopsis
A single father deceived into a treacherous career as the grim reaper, while his precocious daughter Collette grows increasingly suspicious of his whereabouts.
Ba was written and directed by Benjamin Wong. The film stars Lawrence Kao (Fistful of Vengeance), Kai Cech (Marshmallow), Michael Paul Chan (The Goonies), Brian Thompson (Cobra), Shelli Boone (Grimcutty), Jonathan Medina (The Purge TV Series), and Bri Banks.
Daniel has a big problem. He’s broke, homeless and has a young daughter Colette to take care of. He finds himself desperate. He finds a bag filled with money and a cryptic note saying if you take this money you agree to the job offered. At first he doesn’t take the money but in desperation he goes back for it. He quickly finds himself transformed into a grim reaper, complete with skeletal appearance and a touch that kills. Now Daniel has to find a way to pay back the money he took so he can turn back into a human, all while doing his job as a reaper and making sure his daughter is taken care of. It’s a lot to juggle and a lot to worry about.
Ba succeeds in making and keeping Daniel likable. He’s just a decent guy who has the odds stacked against him. Lawrence Kao does a great job at making Daniel a character you want to root for. He’s going through one hell of a rough patch and you really want to see him get back on his feet and back to his daughter. Daniel’s daughter Colette is another likable character. She’s just a good kid with big dreams who loves and want to be with her dad and takes it hard when he dad withdraws from her and doesn’t really understand why. Kai Cech makes Collette a character that’s easy to care about. She’s an innocent and she doesn’t deserve the hard life that she’s stuck with.
Final Thoughts
Ba is a solid supernatural thriller grounded by a great cast who give excellent performances and make the characters likable. Recommended.
