The Bond Movie Review
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Written By Jennifer Ariesta
The Bond is an innovative dystopian movie set in Phoenix, Arizona. No doubt inspired by our pandemic-ravaged world, writer-director Jaron Ikner reimagined a world torn apart by a deadly plague of Auroravirus. Estranged brothers Malcolm Waters (Ashe Bridges) and Zion Waters (Roy Phillips) have drifted apart ever since the pandemic took away everything from them. But when their mother contracts the Auroravirus and gets taken away to quarantine by the evil mega corporation called Dynamation, they both must embark on a journey to save her.
In their quest, the brothers get caught up in the brewing war between Dynamation and T.U.R.N., a rebel group led by the volatile Dee Campbell (Zion Monroe). Along the way, they find unexpected allies and dangerous foes alike. Can they survive this perilous journey and mend the bond that was broken between them?
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When the pandemic hit the world, people began imagining all sorts of dystopian scenarios in real world setting. It was only a matter of time that filmmakers captured them in movies and The Bond finally did that. Paying homage to zombie apocalypse stories like The Walking Dead and Resident Evil, The Bond contained so many timely subjects : humanity turning against each other, radicalism, frayed families, depression, big corp taking advantage of chaotic situations. Still, the enormity of the storytelling ambition is grounded in the relationships between its characters. This is, at its heart, a story about people. Throughout the nearly 2 hour runtime, we witness how humans who are pushed to the brink by harsh situations react to their plights. Relationships change, alliances are tested.
Beside the brothers, an ensemble of characters populated this movie. Zion Monroe as the radicalized Dee Campbell is charismatic as T.U.R.N. leader blinded by his ambition to take down his mortal enemy. Roy Phillips as the younger brother turns up the charm effortlessly as the hot pink wearing wanderer. Jasmine Delgado as Kara Jordan is equally heroic and vulnerable as a woman with torn loyalties. These are the three that stood out to me.
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For an indie, The Bond is a skillfully done action-adventure that ably conveys scale bigger than its budget would’ve permitted. The camerawork is dynamic, always finding interesting angles or camera moves. Kudos for the cinematography choice of not making everything grim and dirty like the typical dystopian films. It’s refreshing to see characters walking in daylight with bright colored, hypebeast-y outfits wielding a weapon to fight each other in an apocalyptic setting.
As an action-adventure, the fight scenes are well choreographed. One thing I like about it that even big budget flicks often miss : the wide shots of combat sequences with minimal cuts. It’s great to see the actors actually doing the stunts, and pretty good at that!
The music and sound editing also deserve kudos. Often, young filmmakers feel obligated to fill every second with sound. The Bond utilizes this effectively, using music and ambience noises only when necessary. However, the mixing sometimes underwhelms as some dialogues get lost among the sound. Minor nitpick!
If you like dystopian adventure with a modern twist, then The Bond is for you.
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