Wildhood Movie Review, A Sports Drama

Movie Review 

Savage — writer/director Bretten Hannam's TIFF 2021 debut — opens with half-Mi'kmaw teenager Lincoln (Phillip Lewitski) dying his hair blonde. In this simple act, Link tries to distance himself from his mother's Mi'kmaq roots. But he also confronts his abusive father, whose response to the color change 

  It's clear that Link moves away from this family dichotomy because he doesn't feel like he belongs to anyone. His mother is dead and he knows nothing about her culture. But when the teenager discovers that his mother is in fact alive, a glimmer of hope for a future—where he belongs—burns in Link's mind. 

Storyline 

 Along with his younger half-brother Travis (Avery Winters-Anthony), Link now embarks on a journey to track down his mother. With the help of Two-Spirit Mi'kmaw Pasmay (Joshua Odjick), a queer Native teenager comes to grips with his sexuality and his Mi'kmaq roots.

  The following exploration of Link's personality is very intimate and sensitive. Hannam, who is a Two-Spirit, non-binary Mi'kmaw, uses a familiar framework to tell his stories, but provides space to explore several themes (sexuality, self-discovery, belonging) in unique ways and often with small movements interspersed throughout the film. .

Cinematography 

  There's also a subtlety to Guy Godfrey's cinematography that emphasizes the sacredness of the journey while focusing on these acts of laying a porcupine to rest in the Mi'kmaq tradition.

  "You don't know how lucky you are to have someone chasing after you," Pasmay tells Link in the middle of their trip.  You're not sure if Link will find what he's looking for, but you'll be desperate for him to find it, but mostly for him to realize what he's gained along the way.

  After a successful premiere at TIFF 2021, Wildhood will hopefully reach the wider audience it deserves now that the film is streaming on Hulu.