GLOBAL HARMONY Review: Corporate Espionage Thrills In A Tonally Dissonant Message Drama
Actor and filmmaker Fabio Massa’s fourth feature film debuts in English a corporate political thriller drama in Global Harmony. The film joins Massa on both sides of the lens with a cast led by Morgan David Jones, Rasha Bilal, Enrico Lo Verso, Randall Paul, Denny Mendez and young actress Faty Ba.
Massa’s concept is born from a script he penned with Diego Olivares and Paul Andersen. That concept is executed with an entry that hits the ground running in a medley of third-world disarray with shots of poor Tunisian villages and a child labor camp, followed by a man making a deal with an impoverished family involving a mysterious envelope.
It’s a bit to dissect going into the next act which introduces us to Richard (Jones), an award-winning journalist who comes from notorious wealth and is now on a TV tour to tackle a worldwide campaign of altruism and peacekeeping he calls “Global Harmony”. Things kick in a little more when after an interview, a speeding car loses control and crashes into a wall, compelling him to come to the aid of its driver, as well as its passenger, a pregnant woman in labor.
Seven years later, Richard and lovely wife, Fada (Bilal) are living on the small Italian island of Lampadusa with adopted daughter, Gaia (Ba). The island is also where Richard has begun operations to steer his brand with months of planning and correspondence left until a major conference with international delegates to raise funds and support for Richard’s initiative. Little does Richard know that his plans are stirring detriment to the ills of the head of a child labor organization where he and his cohorts have engaged an insidious plan of subterfuge and sabotage.
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These aspects of Global Harmony are laid out gradually in a story that burns very slowly in its intricate, often overlong exposition. The first half of the movie does fairly well at establishing some of the friendships, relationships and circumstances faced by a few of the characters. One in particular sees a member of Richard’s team struggling to cope with being away from his ailing son and not being able to immediately afford his treatments.
The story doesn’t begin to really set things in motion until much later with a smidgen of intensity, as Fada finds herself being mysteriously followed by two individuals. The seriousness of this doesn’t really surface in Richard’s mind when confronted by Fada’s worrisome demeanor. Instead, he writes it off as a cosign to his fame whilst sheepishly trying to calm her down.
It’s not until well into the second half of the film that Global Harmony finally starts to escalate from slow-burn espionage drama to something literally more explosive. Tragedy unfolds in what feels like an eleventh-hour development woven into a recapituation that largely does away with any reciprocation in terms of justice. Indeed, a few henchmen get their just dues, but that’s more than I can say for the real culprits responsible.
In the end, Global Harmony feels more like a concept better delivered in a longer-running platform. The movie’s finish conveys a message that runs high on resilience, hope and endurance in the wake of pain and loss, as part of its messaging. In my view, the movie definitely sells itself short for a story that could have been something much more.
Native New Yorker. Been writing for a long time now, and I enjoy what I do. Be nice to me!