Review of Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012) by John H — 10 Aug 2013

The rarest, most thrilling kind of debut film, the kind that's an original, fully formed vision straight out the gate. Benh Zeitlin's bayou tale mixes realism and legend, myth and magic into a thrilling, rapturous experience.

Camerawork as rough-hewn and earthy as the ground; a story that encompasses the coming of age, the passing of generations, and the rise of a leader all at once; developments that surprise and startle, free from the familiarity of other films; a free form, emotionally driven logic that makes perfect sense; feats of acting free from self-awareness, anchored by Quzenzhane Wallis willing into being one of the great movie characters; a scale that's both intimate and cosmic, and ultimately life-affirming.

I realize this has been mainly a rant-list, but this is a rant-list movie - there's been absolutely nothing like this before. The closest comparisons could be Terrence Malick or THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER, and even they lack this film's powerful, determined humanism, its confidence in the face of an unknown future.

We haven't heard what Zeitlin's been up to since BEASTS were unleashed, but if it's half as good as this, he may be, um, the filmmaker of the future.