Hunt For the Wilderpeople

"On paper, the idea of releasing a film in 2016 about a smartarse kid and his taciturn caregiver on the lam in the New Zealand bush seems foolhardy. Let alone one based on a Barry Crump novel, the author seeming representative of an even more bygone age than when he was still a cultural fixture. After watching a quarter hour or so of dry, low key, Taika Waititi humour - charmingly funny as it may be - amid Hunt for the Wilderpeople’s rural setting, you may be wondering if the pic has more going for it. In four words: it bloody well does."

"A pleasing comedy-adventure that pays cheeky homage to key early works from that nation’s first filmic renaissance... Despite the humor, there’s a cornier, more formulaic core here than in the writer-helmer’s prior successes “Boy” and “What We Do in the Shadows”."

"Waititi’s followup to What We Do in the Shadows is more formulaic, but this family comedy does have surprising bite and great, off-kilter performances."

"Everything about Hunt for the Wilderpeople charms and delights – especially its preternaturally talented young lead, the charismatic Julian Dennison."

"Get ready, New Zealand, to wrap your laughing gear around this."

"A deliciously good time at the movies... familiar but perfectly balanced blend of drama and comedy."

"Waititi doesn’t shy away from sadness or alienation, and he revels in the bizarre. His films have a great well of empathy for outsiders, and so it’s fitting that Wilderpeople should take us to the great outdoors... While the plot and some of the characters may be a bit cartoonish, the emotions always feel honest and Waititi is able to get some big laughs thanks to his charming protagonists."