‘Karmalink’ Review: Past Lives and Future Dreams Collide in the First Sci-Fi Film Made in Cambodia
American director Jake Wachtel’s debut feature mixes Buddhism and AI to winning effect.

Photo Courtesy of Robert Leitzell
2 September, 2021
A book of dreams, teenagers searching for buried treasure and a quest to digitally manufacture spiritual enlightenment constitute the intriguing ingredients of “Karmalink,” a fresh and highly entertaining sci-fi mystery-adventure set in a near-future Phnom Penh. Driven by Buddhist concepts of karma and rebirth, and underscored by commentary on Cambodia’s past, present and potential future, this striking feature debut by U.S. filmmaker Jake Wachtel takes viewers on a fascinating and frequently wondrous expedition to a place where science and metaphysics intersect.

“Karmalink” should enjoy a strong festival run and broad VOD distribution following its world premiere at Venice Critics’ Week. It has theatrical potential, especially in regional markets with substantial Buddhist populations. U.S. and Cambodian release details are yet to be announced.

Phnom Penh might not seem like the obvious setting for science-fiction (indeed, this is the first sci-fi film ever made in Cambodia), but it proves to be an ideal backdrop for a tale that anchors its high-concept premise in centuries-old spiritual beliefs. Some pockets of the rapidly developing city already resemble one of those gleaming new worlds from a sci-fi movie. Minor cgi enhancement of skylines and selected streetscapes, and signs advertising the “Phnom Penh to Beijing Bullet Train” are all that’s required to give the film a convincing futuristic ambience.

There’s a strong retro-future feel to the surroundings of Leng Heng (Leng Heng Prak), a-13 year-old boy from the crowded working class community of Tralop Bek. Along with his sisters and mother (Sveng Socheata), Heng lives with his grandmother (Oum Savem). The elderly woman wears a high-tech headset provided by Dr. Sophia (Cindy Sirinya Bishop), a smiling neuroscientist studying memory loss.

While Leng Heng’s mother leads a protest group resisting forced relocation of Tralop Bek residents to make way for yet more urban development (always a hot-button issue in Phnom Penh), the boy’s most immediate concern is making sense of his dreams and how they relate to his past lives.
More: https://variety.com/2021/film/reviews/k ... 235054335/

Cambodian Sci-Fi Movie Karmalink Explores Enlightenment, Reincarnation, and Nanotechnology
By Craig C Lewis
June 10, 2022
The Cambodian science fiction move Karmalink, which won awards on its film festival debut last year for its intriguing mix of high-tech mystery and Buddhist philosophy, has released a new trailer ahead of its North American release next month.

Photo bakchormeeboy.com
“In near-future Phnom Penh, a teenage boy teams up with a street-smart girl from his neighborhood to untangle the mystery of his past-life dreams,” a synopsis on the website of executive producer Valerie Steinberg explains. “What begins as a hunt for a Buddhist treasure soon leads to greater discoveries that will either end in digital enlightenment or a total loss of identity.”

Directed and co-written by Jake Wachtel, Karmalink’s story is set in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh, and sets out to explore the intersection of the Buddhist themes of karma, reincarnation, and enlightenment with the consciousness-altering implications of augmented reality and artificial intelligence, as well as the growing disparity between rich and poor.
https://www.buddhistdoor.net/news/cambo ... echnology/