Carbone

When the two deadliest force, nature and greed pairs together, devastation is imminent. And that’s what I have experienced watching the French movie Carbone (Carbon in English). Premiered in 2017, it revealed the heist of the century— a scam triggered by the carbon policy of the EU back in 2008-2009 which led to billions of losses in euros to many EU countries.

However, as expected by the title, the viewers would be looking for a documentary relating to the actual heist. But, putting the audiences at surprise, Carbone is focused more on crime, murder, and mafia network— a total surprise yet nicely plotted, well-developed, and perfectly performed.

I am a frontline admirer of this statement which is the early opening monologues of the movie. It also ends with the same statement, that is, the same scenario comes at the beginning and concludes the 1 hour and 44 minutes runtime.

Another statement that strikes me the most is the Arab proverb—

So true.

Apart from understanding the fraudulent activity some people are in practice regarding mother nature, these few lines give hints to the audience that it will be a good movie. And it actually is. The rise and fall of the protagonist are masterfully represented along with the message for those who are looking for a shortcut way to success— “success is no accident.” You have to work hard to attain it.

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Witty words aside, what happened in the movie?

As always, I won't narrate the story. I don’t want you to know the plot before you find it on your own. It kills the thrill. But what I can say about the movie is how I felt about it. Yes, it’s an action-packed fast-paced crime thriller and has the power to keep you at the end of your seat during the entire runtime. But you must have a knack for understanding the detail even with the slightest clue given— the romantic scenes, breaking of a family, surrendering before wealth, abusing power, and finally, living with the crime— you cannot appreciate it enough.

The movie is mostly shot indoors with a dark background. It gives a hint of the criminal activity that dominates the movie instead of having a vivid description of a father’s yearning to keep his son close to him even after separation. It shows how wealth changes men and women. How greed clouds the conscience and makes us do terrible things. It illustrates how our negligence to mother earth gives the opportunity to the corporate giants to pollute the earth mercilessly. It’s a good watch; that I can endorse. So, perhaps a 10/10 from me.