The Inheritance: Movie Review

The Inheritance: Maya (Dynevor) is portrayed as a brooding young woman living in Manhattan. She begins her story by stealing a bottle of liquor from a store and later engages in a brief, unfulfilling sexual encounter with a man at a club. It takes some time for the audience to understand the source of her melancholy: she has devoted the past year to caring for her terminally ill mother, who has recently passed away, leaving Maya in a state of grief and uncertainty. During the funeral, her older sister Jess (Kersti Bryan) quietly expresses disbelief at the presence of their estranged father, Sam (Ifans), who has been absent from their lives for many years. He appears to be remorseful and eager to reconcile. In an attempt to reconnect, he offers Maya a lucrative job to assist him in attracting "foreign buyers" for high-end real estate. Although she is doubtful, her need for distraction compels her to board a flight to Cairo with him.

INHERITANCE

As they travel, Maya's inquiries reveal that her father's business may involve laundering money for dubious individuals. Further questioning, along with a glimpse of a fake ID in his passport, leads him to confess that he once engaged in occasional espionage. However, the situation escalates dramatically during a dinner at a designated meeting point. When Sam steps away from the table and fails to return, he calls Maya, instructing her to leave the restaurant immediately. At that moment, a group of law enforcement officers arrives, having been alerted to Sam's presence. It becomes evident that he is being pursued by significant entities, including Interpol, represented here by the familiar face of "24" actor Necar Zadegan, as well as other more dubious figures.

While briefly under the care of her trusted ally Khalil (Majd Eid), Maya receives another distressing call: her father is now being held hostage, facing threats of death from unidentified kidnappers unless she can recover "something they paid for." It is later revealed that this item pertains to stolen state secrets. After evading Khalil, she boards a flight to New Delhi, then takes a train to Bombay, followed by another flight to Seoul, all while being pursued by various agents. Simultaneously, the uncertainty surrounding her father's loyalties and the truthfulness of his statements becomes increasingly troubling.

The guerrilla-style production, filmed without permits, showcases Maya navigating carefully selected international locations—sometimes being chased on foot, in a taxi, or on a motorbike—without the typical gunfights or physical stunts that characterize most action scenes. "The Inheritance" on Afdah presents a vibrant, jittery aesthetic through its handheld camera work, yet it does not reach a level of high excitement or suspense. This is appropriate, as the protagonist is not a seasoned operative like Jason Bourne. Instead, she is a young woman overwhelmed in a foreign environment, lacking proficiency in the local language or relevant skills, and she navigates crises primarily through her cellphone.