HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE – Review

Don’t put away that passport! And stop unpacking! After taking a cinematic road trip to New Zealand last week for the superb documentary TICKLED, we’re back in that lush locale once more. Seems there’s more to that place than elves and hobbits. While David Farrier and friends lived in the city, the action in this fiction flick takes place out in the wild, also known as the “bush”. Our guide/director is the talented film-making actor Taika Waititi. You might recall that gem he released to theatres two years ago, the clever, hilarious “mockumentary” WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS, about a quartet of vampires sharing a big New Zealand estate (it’s streaming via several services, so watch it after you see this). Now it looks like Mr. Waititi has been “called up to the majors”. Those savvy talent scouts at Marvel Studios have recruited him to handle the son of Odin’s third solo adventure, THOR: RAGNAROK (they’re filming right now). But before he crosses the Rainbow Bridge to Asgard, Waititi presents this sweet quirky little character study, THE HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE.

The person at the center of this hunt is a “husky” (the old kids’ clothing designation) 13 year-old orphan named Ricky Baker (Julian Dennison), a  New Zealand lad throughly in love with American “hip hop culture”. As the film begins, a hard-nosed social services rep named Paula (Rachel House) is delivering him to, quite possibly, his last foster home. Considering his age and long “rap” sheet (swearing, spitting, etc.), Ricky’s next stop (if things don’t work out) could be “juevie jail”. His new home is a modest ranch/ farm on the outskirts of the “bush” owned by the warm, middle-aged Bella Faulkner (Rima Te Wiata) and her surly unsocial hubby Hec (Sam Neill). Things don’t go well for Ricky that first night (he wants to be back in the “hood”), so he runs away in the middle of the night. But the ill-prepared Ricky doesn’t get far, and he awakes to find Bella hovering near him. Suddenly Hec’s dog Zag zips past. An energized Bella leaps to her feet and follows. Zag has cornered a wild pig in a ravine. Bella pulls out a big knife from her coat and leaps atop the beast, cutting and slashing. Ricky is horrified and …incredibly impressed. She just may be the coolest “old lady” he’s ever seen! Soon, she’s giving Ricky rifle lessons (the boy hits those targets), and that evening they celebrate his birthday with a cake and a present, an adorable pit bull puppy, which Ricky names “Tupac” (after his hero). Ricky now loves his new home. “Cue” the happy music and “fade-out”, eh? Oh no…

Tragedy takes Bella the next day. A distraught Hec informs Ricky that Paula will soon return to take him back. The heartbroken lad decides to fake his death and escape into the woods with Tupac. But the over-confident kid is no “bush-man” and runs out of food (and he’s hopelessly lost, of course). Luckily Hec tracks him down, but before they can return home Hec injures his leg. While he heals, Paula returns to get Ricky, but finds the ranch empty. She believes Hec has kidnapped the boy. When Hec and Ricky head back, they nearly run into armed authorities. Later they learn that they are wanted, so the mis-matched pair have no choice but to hide out in the forest. Days turn into weeks, then months, as their story turns them into folk heroes and the stuff of legend.

The actor that most film goers will recognize, despite his scraggly salt ‘n’ pepper whiskers is the always engaging Sam Neill. Yes, “dino-man” Dr. Alan Grant is not the smooth intellectual this time around. Hec is a hard scrabble fella’, who’s constantly been  kicked in the teeth by fate. But something about his new pal rekindles a spark in his eyes, one that was nearly extinguished by the loss of his mate. Neill shows us that transformation through Hec’s weary eyes and his initial hesitation at making another human connection. It helps that Neill has a terrific rapport with the film’s breakout star, the impressive screen newcomer Dennison as the unpredictable but endearing ball of energy, Ricky Baker. Much like Hec, Baker has built up a defensive wall around him as a swaggering “wanna-be” street punk. Perhaps this wall protects him from yet another rejection, like a bouncing ball from one foster home to the next. And like his partner, he is changed by love. We laugh as he decides to live off the land, but we’re worried about the blustery squirt. With his wide expressive eyes and rapid fire line delivery, Dennison is a real comic discovery.

This unlikely team is most ably helped by an impressive supporting cast. House makes a most impressive pursuer, a tightly wound “Javert” who is all single-focused determination. Her hair tightly pulled back around a constant scowl, Paula is almost a programmed police drone (she even compares herself to the “Terminator”) with a stalled audio system that repeats the old catchphrase “no child left behind” on an endless loop. Her polar opposite is Te Wiata as the nurturing Bella. She stumbles a bit upon her first meeting with Ricky ( looking at his girth, she remarks “Honey, looks like you ate ALL the pies!”), but she wins him over by showing her wild side (that crazed blood-splattered smile after she’s dispatched the pig), and then making Ricky feel welcome and wanted. The loss of this warm, kind woman who took in these two strays because she wanted a family resonates through the story. Some memorable characters interact with the duo during their lengthy time in the bush. Ricky is completely “gob-smacked” by the ethereal beauty of tween actress Tioeore Ngatai-Melbourne as the generous Kahu who meets him while riding her horse (perhaps Ricky thinks that she’s a princess of the forest). And later, there’s the manic, slightly mad “Psycho” Sam played by gifted comic actor Rhys Darby (so good as the leader of the werewolf pack in SHADOWS). Darby is a bolt of pure energy as he shows off his hidden HQ to the bewildered Hec and Ricky. A true wild and wacky wood sprite, Darby’s Sam is a real delight. Oh, and the director himself is a true “hoot” as a befuddled minister conducting an awkward funeral service for Bella.

As funny as his cameo is, Waititi really shines in his double duties behind the camera. Adapting the novel by Barry Crump, the director/screenwriter has delivered a very funny modern fable on family and friendship. Waititi veers a tad into Wes Anderson territory by opening scenes with chapter titles (“Chapter 10: The Tide Turns”, etc.), but never forces the whimsy or humor into “preciousness”. He gets wonderful performances from the cast (Dennison’s Baker is real original) and makes wonderful use of the beautiful vibrant green forests of New Zealand (kudos to cinematographer Lachlan Milne). No wonder the brains at Marvel Studios scooped this talented film maker up! But before they see his version of Thor and the Hulk team up, movie audiences would be wise to join Hec and Ricky on the run in the very sweet and entertaining HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE.

4.5 Out of 5

HUNT FOR THE WILDERPEOPLE plays everywhere and screens exclusively in the St. Louis area at Landmark’s Tivoli Theatre