A retired boxer will stop at nothing in the pursuit of her missing sister, launching herself into the belly of the beast to find and punish those responsible for her disappearance.
Screened as part of NZIFF 2021
Catch the Fair One 2021
“Propelled by a commanding performance from WBA Super lightweight champion Kali ‘K.O. Mequinonoag’ Reis, the first Native American fighter to win the International Boxing Association middleweight crown, Catch the Fair One is a dark powerhouse of a film. Pulverizing with fury and grief, it’s the scorching culmination of a four-year collaboration with director Josef Kubota Wladyka, who co-wrote with his star. As much a revenge thriller as it is a personal interpretation of factual crimes, the film addresses North America’s horrific crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women with urgency, coming at a time when it couldn’t be more needed.” — Mitch Davis, Fantasia International Film Festival 2021
“Executive producer and auteur Darren Aronofsky’s influence is felt throughout without ever becoming overbearing... evoking The Wrestler while it heads in a more dangerous direction... Even with its quick 85-minute runtime, the film is relentless – darker than dark as it dives headfirst into a growing problem in the US that so far hasn’t gotten much attention on film or in fiction. Wladyka’s ultra-grounded approach is key to the film’s success...
[He] is able to build an unbearably tense atmosphere as Reis responds to the darkness surrounding her character with a resilient yet human mix of fear and drive. Director and lead actor are wonderfully in sync here, revealing an underground world with what feels like horrifying truth all while building to a crescendo that is genuinely earned.” — Matt Dougherty, AwardsDaily.com