![]() ![]() Plain and simple, this is a very awkward love story. ![]() I already know this is going to be one of my favorite movies. I went to see it once, and thought it was so awesome that I bought a ticket and went to the very next show. But it’s nice to see that Taika Waititi’s feel-good intention was always there, and it’s equally nice to see that in his later films - the far superior Hunt for the Wilderpeople and the incomparable Jojo Rabbit - that he also learned the meaning of restraint.I just saw Eagle vs. Jarrod at one point utters “I guess I’ve gotta keep creating, or I’ll just die.” It’s a sentiment that perfectly sums up Waititi’s cinematic journey he could have drowned in absurdity. Shark wears proudly on its sleeve, but without the weighty burden of forcing quirkiness down his audience’s throat. Shark is a delightfully frustrating watch that, without argument, has flaws, but it’s a brave first step for a director who will go onto far more ambitious projects that are still packed with the vivid personality and oddities that Eagle vs. It’s unapologetic in its personality, but like all erratic children, they’re not for everybody - they can grate on you, and tire you out quickly, but they can also charm you and make you feel like the world still has some good left to offer. Shark is a portrait of Waititi’s psyche unchained and unbound. Shark stumbles through its own story, and leaves only scraps of trippy psychedelia and absurdity for us to dig our teeth into.Įagle vs. However, when boiled down to its bare bones, Eagle vs. It’s a film that, thankfully, can stand on its own thanks to off-the-wall quotes and unconventional characters - a formula that fans of Flight of the Conchords will be familiar with. Shark, there isn’t much meaning to grab ahold of. Shark falls down heavily on actual story it’s far too easy to zone out amongst Jarrod’s childlike antics and to become numbed to Lily’s pushover mindset, and once you see past the quirky, near-alternate reality that Waititi has created for the purposes of Eagle vs. Against the odds, they balance each other out extraordinarily, each adding pinches of surrealism or sensibility into each other’s personalities throughout the film’s runtime.įor all its charm, however, Eagle vs. Shark a charming watch, it’s characters are so blissfully unaware that they’re unsuited that they become a beautiful duo to watch on screen, with Lily desperately trying to understand Jarrod’s eccentricities, while Jarrod buries the trauma over his brother’s sudden death under these idiosyncrasies. Shark tells the tale of a loose romance between Lily and Jarrod (Loren Horsley and Jemain Clement, respectively), two bizarre characters who barely match on paper, let alone in any kind of discernable reality - but it doesn’t feel as though it really matters, and that’s what makes Eagle vs. ![]() Shark, the difference in quality is astounding - but the trail Waititi walked to get from one to the other is clear, and it’s a well-trodden path.Įagle vs. But looking now at his latest release, 2019’s Jojo Rabbit, a heartwarming if not harrowing tale of a wannabe Hitler Youth tryout who finds his mind being changed when he discovers his mother is secretly housing a Jewish refugee, in comparison to his first deviation into film, 2007’s Eagle Vs. While his films still feel surprisingly independent (save for the Thor franchise he’s found himself straddling), Waititi’s future adventures into the weird-and-wonderful outback of cinema will undoubtedly grow in scale to become more ambitious, untameable beasts. Taika Waititi has established himself as one New Zealand’s most extraordinary exports, the kind of visionary talent Hollywood wishes they’d churned out themselves. “I guess I’ve gotta keep creating, or I’ll just die” - Taika Waititi’s necessary step towards better things. ![]()
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