Movie Premiere: A heart on the mend

By Mario Malivert

On October 2, 2022, the feature-length film A heart on the mend (Un cœur en convalescence) premiered at the Strand Theater in Boston. Written by Brunir Olivier Shackleton and directed by Karm-Syndia, this movie features Nadège Telfort, Betty Bella Lemite, Jean Laplante, Chris Jason Laplante, Vanessa Azemar, Venette Jean-Pierre, and Brunir Olivier Shackleton.

The film opens on a festive note: Ralph Guy Alexandre (Brunir Shackleton)’s bachelor party, with music, striptease, and his friends horsing around. Minutes later, cops show off to inform him of his fiancée’s death from a car crash. After this hectic start, the story slows down to describe Ralph’s mourning. He’s shown as a successful photographer who keeps having flashbacks of wonderful moments spent with his late fiancée. He takes no pleasure in his photo shoots, even when surrounded by beautiful women.   

Later, the focus shifts to Christèle Mondavi (Nadège Telfort) who is going through a tough time because of the absence of her husband, Robert Mondavi (Jean Laplante), a marine deployed in Afghanistan. Her anguish worsens when Robert informs her that he has extended his tour by joining a special force mission in Kuwait.

The film presents two characters stricken with sadness, each one in their own way, but who will end up supporting each other, when Robert asks Ralph, his best friend, to spend time with Christèle to help her cope with her feelings of loneliness. Will Ralph prove himself as a trusted friend who, despite his own grief, must try to uplift her mood? Will Christèle, who can hardly deal with her husband’s absence, remain faithful to her wedding vows?

The film takes a suspenseful turn when Ralph falls in love with Joanne Jean-Charles (Betty Bella Lemite), Christèle’s best friend. Will Christèle maintain her composure during a dinner with the new couple? Will her friendship with Joanne perturbate the budding idyll between Ralph and Joanne? He has found love again while she’s still fighting to keep her sanity. Those questions and their eventual resolutions seize our interest until the denouement.

Brunir Shackleton, the scriptwriter, bets on the conflictual situations between Ralph, Christèle, and Joanne. However, bolder exploitation of these twists would make the movie more moving and the plot more compelling, granting the actors more latitude to showcase their emotional range.

A heart on the mend shines, thanks to its superb cinematography. Both lead and supporting actors deliver well-balanced performances. Nadège Telfort, one of the best actresses in Haitian cinema, enhances the quality of the film with her great scenic presence and her stellar performance. Karm-Syndia, the young multitalented director of the movie, begets a full-length feature that has nothing to envy Hollywood productions.

We hope that the Cinélions team will continue its journey while getting even stronger to tackle more ambitious projects. The high quality of the production and the marketing shows a sure potential to lead the way in making Haitian filmmaking more professional.

Mario Malivert - mariomalivert@yahoo.com