Hunt for the Wilderpeople

If you know anything about my taste in film, you will know that Taika Waititi is my favorite director of all time. I’ve always found that his comedic, dramatic, and visual styles are always blended in a perfect way. Hunt for the Wilderpeople is a perfect example of this, if it weren’t for Jojo Rabbit, this would definitely be Taika’s best. Hunt for the Wilderpeople is a story about how family can come from the unlikeliest of places in the hardest times. The protagonist, Ricky Baker, is a perfectly cast teenage rebel who is put into a foster family where he meets Aunty, who really takes care of him. Without spoiling anything, the film really is an emotional roller coaster. Ricky Baker’s Journey of learning of life away from being a selfish brat is complimented by the journey of “Uncle” Hector, who learns to accept others and open up to new experiences. The film really delves into how relationships can be made in tough situations. Now, all of this makes it sound like an absolute drag, and really, it isn’t. This film is absolutely hilarious, and on point with Taika’s usual comedic style. Unlike Taika’s other work (excluding Thor: Ragnarok), this movie is full of wonderful action. The way that the entire film is set up really makes these extreme action sequences an extreme joy. The soundtrack is also really fun and different. Still, I found that the movie did suffer from quite a few jokes that didn’t land. And the ones that did were sometimes done just a little short. At the very end of the movie, I feel like there needed to be more, and another half an hour could have easily made the story a lot more flushed out and complete. Still, this movie checks all of the boxes for me, and it’s one of Taika’s best. I’ll give this one a 9.3/10