Brilliant and touching

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Set on the east coast of New Zealand in 1984, Boy, an 11-year-old kid and devout Michael Jackson fan, gets a chance to know his father, who has returned to find a bag of money he buried years ago.This is the rise of Taika Waititi in all his glory. Whole "Eagle vs Shark" is a fun, offbeat, quirky romance, and is often compared (both favorably and unfavorably) to "Napoleon Dynamite", it falls short just a bit. It is with "Boy" that we see the greatness Waititi is capable of and would continue with such films as "What We Do in the Shadows" and "Hunt for the Wilderpeople".Exactly how they got away with so much Michael Jackson is beyond me. But I suppose if you don't use the music and just focus on the imagery, you can pass it off as a loving homage or satire. Heck, if I was Jackson, i would have been flattered.

WE watched this movie tonight on Netflix and both liked it very much. We are old and live in Maine USA which is about as far away as you can get from the setting of this movie, but the themes are universal. Poverty, neglect, crime, stupidity, charm, delight, love, The main problem we had was in not always understanding the dialogue, but actually that didn't really matter and with a roku you can back space and catch up. Both the brother actors were wonderful. All the actors were very good. I could not understand what nationality the characters were. My husband said Polynesisan. But that didn't matter. I would definitely recommend this to a sensitive, understanding viewer.

Boy - 2010 'Boy', set on the East Coast of New Zealand, will make you laugh and cry. Written and directed by Taika Waititi, who also plays the role of Boy's Father, Alamein,this movies is unpretentious,devoid of self pity and beautifully acted. The eleven year old Boy (played by James Rolleston),lives with his brother Rocky and three Cousins. They are cared for by an Aunt (whom we never see) because their Mother is dead and their Father is 'away'. The family is a self-sustaining little unit and although they get by, it is clear they are on the breadline. Boy is a bright, happy, innocent child who idolizes Michael Jackson and is over the moon when he finally gets to meet his Father. When his Aunt goes away, Boy must run the household with the help of his young brother and cousins. Initially things run relatively smoothly but that all changes when, out of the blue, the brothers' Father shows up with the intention of digging up a cache of money he buried years ago. Boy is spellbound by this Father he never knew,and idolizes his every move. As Alamein becomes more comfortable around his sons and the house, it is clear he is not particularly interested in,or capable of,taking on the responsibility of child care. Much of his time is spent horsing around with his mates, drinking beer, smoking weed, puffing up his ego and desperately seeking sources of money. Boy, who was previously picked on at school and ignored by the girl he fancied, is now bursting with pride as he shows off his Father to the folks of the small town. Boy's attempts at emulating his Father are almost painful to watch but, as the treasure hunt goes on and on, Alamein's self-absorption, petulance, anger,and abuse of alcohol and drugs initiates a dramatic shift in the dynamic between Father and Son. The beauty of this film is its simplicity, outstanding acting and the combination of matter-of-factness, radiant joy and palpable sorrow expressed by Boy as he deals with the radical changes that befall his family life. If you want to see a thoughtful, intelligent, really well made movie,(and if you don't mind getting the Kleenex out),I thoroughly recommend it.

Boy is fun movie that takes place in New Zealand. Directed by Taika Waititi, who also wrote the script. The movie is about a young boy everyone simply calls Boy. Boy lives with his grandmother and his brother Rocky and many of his cousins on a poor-farm in New Zealand in the Bay of Plenty area, and is a huge Michael Jackson fan. This is a movie about a boy that meets his real father and realization hits that his father is not as great as he had hoped. The movie brings in the hard facts that Boy's father is a criminal who returns to dig up a bag of money and has very little care for the boy. It is a coming of age movie and depicts real life drug and money issues, but the main issue is absentee fathers.This movie started out with the title Choice and then The Volcano before acquiring its current catchy title. The New Zealand hit won 9 awards and received 8 nominations. Awards included Taika Waititi winning AFI Fest 2010 Audience Award Best International Feature Film and for the Sydney Film Festival 2010 Waititi also won Best Feature Film Audience Award.I think most people will understand and enjoy this movie thanks to a drastic decline in bad fathers in the world.