Direction: Jaco Bouwer
Country: South Africa
Executed with above-average imagery, Gaia, a trippy eco thriller directed by South African Jaco Bouwer, tells the nightmarish experience of a park ranger, Gabi (Monique Rockman), while conducting a routine operation in a secluded forest. Injured, she accidentally bumps into two reclusive survivalists - father (Carel Nel) and son (Alex Van Dyk) - who show to have a bizarre relationship with the forest.
The woods feel alive with wilderness-spawned creatures and a phantasmagoric energy all its own. Fungus attacks and folklore elements are not rare, but the dreamlike sequences are excessive and repetitive. With that said, the film is solidly inventive in what it gets right.
The acting is good enough and Bouwer directs competently, availed by Pierre-Henri Wicomb’s effective sound design and Jorrie van der Walt’s beautiful cinematography. It seems intentional from the filmmaker to keep things vague rather than providing too many details. Thus, the plot by Tertius Kapp feels fresh until it takes us to familiar places.
Even limited in budget, Gaia is a surprising poke in the eye of our horror-movie expectations.
