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Khari "Conspiracy" Stewart wouldn't be the first rapper
said to have magic flow. The issue is that Stewart believes his flow
really is magic, the psychic and extraplanetary kind, originating from a
demon he calls Anacron. "I've heard him everywhere, from Halifax to
Vancouver," Stewart says of Anacron's voice before adding, in a
trademark what-the-fuck twist, "Speed of thought, any distance." In
Jonathan Balazs' documentary Mars Project, psychologists
call Stewart schizophrenic, though Addi, his twin brother and co-rapper,
believes him. In interviews, the brothers' voices have identical tone
and cadence, but Addi's is always the voice of reason ("This is
reality!") while Khari waxes ontological ("Basically, telepathy
is…whatever you think"). Set to a creepy score seemingly swiped from the
yet-to-be-realized Zombies Invade Tibet, Mars Project is
as much about schizophrenia and the pitfalls of psychiatry as it is
about Stewart, though it takes all 62 minutes to realize it. The
tactfully if tediously drawn parallel is that both Stewart and the
mental health care system incorporate illogic. "Most things we do are
not very scientific," argues psychiatrist Dr. Kwame McKenzie, and Khari
would agree. "There are aliens out there with magical powers and
technological superiority," he says, with the uncanny confidence that
makes Mars Project tick.
Critic's Grade: B
SEE IT: Mars Project plays at the Hollywood Theatre at 7 pm Tuesday, Oct. 22. Director Jonathan Balazs will attend.
WWeek 2015