The Wild Hunt
Film Review by Kam Williams
Headline: Medieval Reenactment Serves as Backdrop for Romance Drama
Erik (Ricky Mabe) and Evelyn (Kaniehtiio Horn) are a Quebec couple in crisis. The pretty young woman has become so bored with her slacker boyfriend that she’s decided to participate in a weekend-long, medieval-themed masquerade being staged somewhere in the forest outside of Montreal. Truth be told, Erik isn’t really a loser with no redeeming qualities, after all, he does at least dote on his aging father who is slowly slipping away into senility.
Such behavior strikes a sharp contrast with that of his emotionally-detached brother, Bjorn (Mark Antony Krupa), who is in denial about their dad’s deteriorating health. Bjorn would rather escape to a parallel universe, so he accompanies Evelyn to the site of the live-action role-play reenactment where he dresses up like a Viking.
This development doesn’t sit well with Erik, since he feels that such fanciful recreations are for geeks who need to get a life. He broods about his predicament after being left behind, until he’s finally upset enough to make his way to the gathering to retrieve Evelyn. However, upon his arrival, he is met by gatekeepers who insist that he adopt appropriate “decorum,” meaning he must don a period costume and stay in character to search the grounds for his girlfriend.
Not surprisingly, it doesn’t take Erik long to break the rules, given that he has little respect for the group of pompous posers in elaborate outfits suddenly surrounding him. He feels that they, including his estranged sibling, take the game way too seriously, as they speak in stilted Old English accents (“I implore you,” and “’Tis I, Hammer of Thor!”), and only occasionally revert to their everyday personas to argue over whether or not someone has just been slain on the field of battle.
Such silly folderol proves increasingly upsetting to Erik who just wants to find Evelyn and leave, ASAP. But this is easier said than done since lovely Princess Evelynia’s been kidnapped by Shaman (Trevor Hayes), King of the Celts. Not to worry, a competing army comprised of Vikings, Anglo-Saxons and elves hatch a plan to rescue the fair maiden.
But after Evelyn remains ambivalent when confronted by exasperated Erik about where he loyalty lies, the goings-on in the festivities take a gruesome turn as the faux fighting morphs into actual violence. A psychological thriller highlighting how hell hath no fury like a frustrated knight in shining armor, even if he only has a plastic sword at his disposal!
Very Good (3 stars)
Unrated
Running time: 96 minutes
Distributor: Hannover House
1 comment:
(Spoiler warning)
This movie was a terrible example of LARPers. Rape, murder and suicide? All this movies does is drag LARPing through the gutter.
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