Boy

Boy is a playful yet poignant story of the vulnerabilities of childhood, and is one of my all-time favourite films. Directed by Taika Waititi, and set in Waititi’s beautiful hometown of Waihau Bay, New Zealand, the story follows the reconnection of eleven year-old Boy and six year-old Rocky with their estranged father, Alamein, who has recently gotten out of prison after several years away. Temporarily absent of the children’s grandmother, the sensible and comforting adult presence in the film, Alamein becomes the authoritative figure of the household and creates physical and emotional chaos around him, leading his eldest son astray.

Boy begins as a naïve, innocent, and imaginative character who clings to faint memories of his parents and embellishes these with fantastical stories to fill in the blanks, particularly by painting his father as a heroic and larger than life character in his mind. Upon Alamein’s arrival, Boy’s romanticised perception of him is initially strengthened further as Alamein both indulges some of Boy’s fantasies and adds in some of his own, such as emphasising his social status through being the leader of his gang. In reality, however, there is some humour surrounding this claim as the ‘gang’ consists only of three immature men who are far smaller in stature and far less intimidating than the local, much larger gang. This juxtaposition of how Alamein sees himself and how others see him is consistent throughout the film, and can be argued to be one of the reasons why he bonds so well with the young boys in the community, as his childish and competitive nature makes him more their equal than that of his fellow adults.

Furthermore, the film illustrates the pinnacle moment in childhood when children realise their parents are flawed human beings, and the emotional connotations of this, as Boy slowly understands his mistake of putting his father on such a pedestal, and battles internally between resenting him for his failings and still wanting his approval and a connection with him. Boy’s perfect image of his father chips away as Alamein allows the cracks to show in his character, and the viewer can increasingly see how damaging Boy’s attempts at being like him are. The final defining moments of disillusion for Boy are powerfully and emotively shown, with the viewer made fully aware that there is no turning back from what has been done. The way in which Alamein’s presence begins to fade even from Boy’s memories of his mother is cleverly done, replaying the same flashbacks shown earlier in the film with Alamein now absent. This remains open to interpretation in whether Boy has moved the focus of his idealistic fantasies onto his mother alone as whilst he now sees his father in a more realistic light his mother’s romanticised memory remains untainted, or whether his true memories are now being shown. If the latter is the case, it would prove that Alamein disappeared from Boy’s life much earlier than previously thought, which is given evidence by Boy’s outburst at his father later in the film accusing him of not being present when his brother Rocky was born and his mother died, and that he actually doesn’t remember him at all. These statements could be interpreted as Boy lashing out in a moment of passion without meaning what he is saying, or arguably showing that he is unsure of what is real and what isn’t now that the lines between his memories and his fantasies have blurred. Whilst Alamein’s lack of acknowledgement of the statements could hint that they are true, it can also be argued that although they are false, Alamein didn’t want to argue in retaliation with his clearly distressed son. Ultimately, however, Alamein’s failure to clarify the truth to Boy in this moment emphasises the frustration both Boy and the viewer feel for a lack of closure on the issue.

Additionally, Alamein’s character creates conflicting emotions in the viewer, as one is caught between feeling exasperated at him for being so selfish and irresponsible with his children, but at times finding his mischievous and youthful nature almost endearing. This is particularly evident in moments where Alamein seems to genuinely believe that he is being a good father by spending time with his sons, completely oblivious to the destructive nature of their activities and the damaging influence he is having on them, particularly Boy. There are many points in the film when Boy, and even sweet and sensitive little Rocky, seem far more mature, emotionally intelligent, and able to cope with responsibility than their father. This creates frustration with him from the viewer, which is complicated by the moments of empathy that are provoked for him too, such as his silent but evident grievance over his late wife, and his own imaginative fantasies of taking his children with him to relish in his lost riches.

It is also notable that whilst Boy does not pass the bedchel test, which requires two named female characters to have a conversation with each other about anything other than a man, there are multiple strong female roles present in this film. These characters are diverse in personality and span three generations of ages, with the majority existing in their own right with their own stories and interests to tell outside of merely being an accessory to the male protagonists or a plot device in the male characters’ stories. This film also highlights the voices of Mauri characters on screen in an array of roles outside of the stereotypical norms often reserved for Mauri actors, which Taika Waititi has stated was one of the main reasons he began writing screenplays to begin with, pushing the boundaries in a positive, progressive direction.

I truly adore this film, and think the story is told beautifully through a delicate balance of light hearted silliness and dramatic pathos, leaving the viewer feeling moved long after one finishes watching.

Rating: 5/5