Crumbs

This debut feature film from Spanish director Miguel Llansó is a weird but intriguing little post-apocalyptic tale set in the magnificent wilds of Ethiopia after a war that has nearly wiped out humanity. Gagano, or Candy (played by the diminutive Daniel Tadesse), spends his days trudging through the landscape, collecting bits of debris (the titular crumbs) from pre-apocalyptic times—among his more prized items are rubber Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle amulets, Michael Jackson records, and plastic swords, which can be traded for cash at the local pawn shop. Along the way, Candy tries to avoid confrontations with a masked figure in a Nazi uniform who wields a toy ray-gun. His partner Birdy (Selam Tesfaye) stays behind in the abandoned bowling alley where they live, experiencing strange dreams—some involving a spaceship that has been inertly hovering in the sky but appears to be powering up. When the automatic lanes of the bowling alley lurch back to sporadic life, Candy seeks answers from a witch and winds up in an argument with a surly old man in a Santa Claus suit (Candy himself is rocking a Superman shirt and a red cape). None of this makes much sense, but the parade of pop culture references raise an occasional smile, while the striking African landscapes make for evocative visuals. A strong optional purchase. (F. Swietek)