It's the best New Zealand export since Flight Of The Concords and it's an even better commercial for the island of the long white cloud than Lord Of The Rings ever was. Hunt For The Wilderpeople just may be the best film of the year and it's earned that title by just making you feel... everything.
Meet Ricky Baker, he’s a bad egg, we’re talking disobedience, stealing, spitting, running away, throwing rocks, kicking stuff, loitering, and graffitiing. The thing is despite all this, he's just the most likeable kid thanks to the talent of New Zealand actor Julian Dennison. When Ricky runs away from home and in the process gets lost in the forest with his foster father Uncle Hec, the two become infamous fugitives when the public just assume the worst about an old man and a young boy. Along their journey they meet all different sorts of uniquely eccentric New Zealanders which makes for an incredibly enjoyable hour and forty minutes.
Now this may seem like a simple story, but what makes this so good is all the emotional layers that are filled throughout every element of the film. When you break it down it’s a story about outcasts trying to find their place in the world and that yearning for belonging is just done in a way that is so relatable and meaningful. And throughout all of these meaningful moments, you will find yourself smiling the whole way through, except when you’re laughing, or crying, which happens a lot in this film.
Director Taika Waititi, who brought us other great films such as What We Do In The Shadows and Boy keeps the cinematography and editing energetic in the same way Edgar Wright approaches his film, but Waititi knows when to restrain it to let us breath in the emotions of a moment. Whether it be something a character has said or an embrace that two characters may share, Taika Waititi knows how to deliver the comedy, but still remembers the heart.
Of course directing aside, it’s the talent of everyone on screen no matter how big or small their role may be that keeps this film constantly entertaining. Whether your heart is breaking for Sam Neill’s Uncle Hec or your splitting your sides with Rhys Darby’s Psycho Sam the whole film hinges and succeeds on the talents of Julian Dennison who can draw you in with his charm but at every turn just nails each moment with simple mannerisms or just genuine reactions to situation and circumstances.
Overall, Hunt For The Wilderpeople is one of the best films of the year because it really has everything: it will make you laugh, a lot, it will make you cry, more than once, and from start to finish, you will not be able to wipe the smile off your face (except when you’re crying.)
Hunt For The Wilderpeople gets Four and Three Quarter Stars out of Five (or Four and Three Quarter emotional funny bones constantly slugging you in the feels)
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