The Wild Boys

Like a fever dream in which Jean Cocteau and Jean-Pierre Jeunet had a baby that proceeded to direct a version of Pasolini’s "Salo" with a smattering of Kubrick, "The Wild Boys" is bold and provocative filmmaking from debut feature film director Bertrand Mandico.After committing a heinous crime, five adolescent boys are forced to travel on the sailboat of a Dutch captain in the hope that this will mend their savage ways. But soon the boys decide to mutiny against the captain and soon find themselves on a supernatural island. Amidst verdant and fertile vegetation, the boys fall under the powers of the island and find themselves drawn into a web of intrigue which will be certain to change them forever.Mandico flirts with a number of issues, amongst them gender politics, sexuality and colonialism, through stark yet surreal black and white photography and almost comic overt symbolism – such as the large phallic plants which the boys suck milky white liquid out to survive. The film’s gleeful avoidance of subtlety in terms of sexuality or the fantasy world it creates helps create a sense of relentless energy and the film is consistently inventive, funny and – amidst all the chaos of the film – insightful.The cast provide committed performances, all with a certain level of archness that fits into the film’s unique landscape and it all adds up to a unique cinematic vision that is uncompromising, clever, humorous and indicative of a talent that will be one to watch over the years to come.Laurence Boyce