“Me and this fat kid / We ran we ate and read books / And it was the best.” Hec’s (Kiwi legend Sam Neill) Haiku
As fantasies go, Hunt for the Wilderpeople is an example of how they can be fun and meaningful if written and directed right. An old man, Hec, and a young boy, Ricky (Julian Dennison), strike out in the New Zealand bush to escape government social services seeking to send the boy to another depressing foster home or a prison known as “Juvie.”
As I researched for an NPR show on the director, I discovered the incomparable Hunt for the Wilderpeople. Besides its fabulous plot, where two outsiders evade the law for months because Hec is well versed in the wild and is growing fond of the little bundle of trouble, writer-director Taika Waititi and writer Barry Crump use the wit and humanity so evident in Waititi’s Jojo Rabbit to create two memorable characters and secondaries who will not be forgotten either.
Along their merry way, they learn to accept each other’s eccentricities and survive without the safety nets available to the rest of regular people. Having started us out with a new aunt in a new foster home, Bella (Rima te Wiata), we can see there will be love for Ricky to counter the bureaucratic sternness, exemplified in Paula (Rachel House), that fails to see warmth and purpose are Ricky’s salvation: “Yeah, and I'll never stop chasing you - I'm relentless, I'm like the Terminator.” Paula
As you can tell from the opening quote, haikus became a communication between the two adventurers, remarkable because Hec is illiterate. The two bond through nature and poetry.
I remain speechless as I think of the many lyrical moments in Hunt for Wilderpeople. It’s available on Netflix and Crackle. Watch with your family and friends for a sweet evening that will bond you as our protagonists do. It’s good old-fashioned moviemaking with modern sensibilities—it will make you long to be a wandering “Wilderpeople” straight to a paradise called New Zealand.
“It’s majestical.” Hec
Hunt for the Wilderpeople
Director: Taika Waititi (JoJo Rabbit)
Screenplay: Waititi, Barry Crump, based on book Wild Pork and Watercress
Cast: Sam Neill (Jurassic Park), Julian Dennison (Deadpool)
Run Time: 1h 41m
Rating: PG-13
John DeSando, a Los Angeles Press Club first-place winner for National Entertainment Journalism, hosts NPR’s It’s Movie Time and co-hosts Cinema Classics as well as podcasts Back Talk and Double Take out of WCBE 90.5 FM. Contact him at JohnDeSando52@gmail.com
