Mr. Movie review: ‘Hunt for the Wilderpeople’ has lots of laughs from the Land Down Under

The Australian movie Hunt for the Wilderpeople kicks off the Battelle Film Club’s spring series. The group picked a good one. It’s based on Wild Pork & Watercress, a book written by Barry Crump in 1986.

Yeah, I know. By who?

I can’t speak for the book, but the movie is a blast.

Sam Neill and Rima Te Wiath are Hec and Bella. They live on the edge of the Australian bush. It’s wild, untamed land where only the most rugged can survive. Bella wants kids but can’t have them, so she gets overweight, teenaged Ricky from what passes as Australia’s foster kids program.

No one wants Ricky. He’s a liar, larcenous and a vandal. Hec and Bella are a last resort. The kid immediately hates the rural life but connects with Bella. Then Bella dies and the authorities tell Hec they’re coming to get Ricky. By then, the kid loves it there and doesn’t want to leave.

But rules are rules.

Ricky runs away into the bush, and Hec — who doesn’t particularly like Ricky — goes after him. Fate forces them to bond. Hec starts to see things Ricky’s way and, since he’s an expert on wilderness survival, decides to stay on the run with the boy. The authorities take a dim view of the decision and go after them.

Their flight and plight gain the notice of the Australian media, and they become folk heroes of sorts.

Starting the positives, I love Australian movies. The ones that get here like Strictly Ballroom, The Dish, Priscilla Queen of the Desert, Rabbit Proof Fence, Crocodile Dundee, Shine and others are usually a blast.

Hunt for the Wilderpeople is no exception.

Writer/director Taika Wattiti, who did the awful vampire flick What We do in the Shadows, redeems himself here. This is tongue-in-cheek fun from start to finish.

Another positive is Neill, who is best known as the dinosaur dodging scientist in Jurassic Park. He and Julian Dennison — who plays Ricky — have that wonderful buddy movie chemistry that will have you grinning ear-to-ear.

All Battelle Film Club films are at 7:30 p.m. Fridays at Battelle Auditorium, 902 Battelle Blvd., Richland.

Tickets are $4 for adults and $2 for children. Series passes to all the films are $16. All foreign language films are subtitled in English.

This story was originally published January 26, 2017 at 1:14 PM with the headline "Mr. Movie review: ‘Hunt for the Wilderpeople’ has lots of laughs from the Land Down Under."