The Magic Bomb, a feature film, was screened at The Museum of the Moving Image on Saturday afternoon as part of the Making Sense of Self thematic block. Here is the movie description: “The Magic Bomb is an eighty three minute thriller set in Brooklyn produced, written, and directed by Randy Gordon-Gatica. It is the story of a man named Conrad Lopez who gets enmeshed in a plot to nuke Manhattan. On the day that he is married the weapon is left on his doorstep. Conrad then receives a mysterious call where he is told that he has sixty minutes to deliver the weapon to Central Park or his wife will be murdered.”
Afterward, we caught up with director Randy Gordon-Gatica, and here’s what he had to say on his film:
The Court Square Blog: Tell us your inspiration for the film.
Randy Gordon-Gatica: I love conspiracy theories, even if I don’t believe in them. And no one ever asks the question of, if a conspiracy theory is true, how could it happen? How would it work? The challenge was to dramatize the concept of a small group of people that run the world. How would that work? That was the major inspiration.
TCSB: You filmed this two years ago, yet many of the issues of present day (such as the DACA) are presented in this movie. How were you able to predict that?
RGG: We’re watching the headlines, and I’m like, ‘damn.’ I’m as surprised as anyone. I’m Mexican-American, but I’m surprised at the aspect that he’s a dreamer is so relevant now. I was just thinking of the craziest, dumbest things I could imagine, and I just went farther. It was just luck.
TCSB: Did you plan for all of the twists and turns in the movie?
RGG: When it’s a good screen play, it’s constantly surprising you. You’re just kind of along for the ride. If you’re smart, you follow it.
TCSB: Spoiler alert! What was in the box at the end of the movie?
RGG: Money. One-hundred million dollars in each box.