Get Duked!

As a purveyor of underscrutinized horror films, I really enjoyed this title. I would not necessarily categorize it as a Thriller, which is how I found it, but more like a gruesome comedy. Nevertheless, the fast pace and inane situations made for a fun hour and a half. Definitely worth a watch.

If you are the type who likes their storylines to be well buttoned up and make a lot of sense, this won't, but overall that just made it more hilarious in the end.

With an undercurrent that explores class issues and generational divides, 'Get Duked! (2020)' sees four schoolboys become stranded in the Scottish Highlands, chased by homicidal cultists as they attempt to complete the much-coveted 'Duke of Edinburgh' award. The flick balances humour with horror, leaning heavily towards the former but always respecting the latter. There are no real scares in the thing but it doesn't really matter; no-one should really expect existential terror, grotesque body horror or, even, plain old jump scares in a piece such as this. Unfortunately, there aren't any real laughs, either. Don't get me wrong, there are chuckles peppered throughout. Plus, the flick is generally affable and energetic enough that it isn't heavily impacted by its lack of high-calibre comedy. It's an enjoyable experience that sometimes satisfyingly subverts audience expectation. It's a decent effort. 6/10

The sort of films that get called "anarchic" have to strike a tricky balance, often when it's clear the cast and crew were having as much fun as possible MAKING a movie, the actual result gets lost and the audience ends up watching a rambling, aimless and pointless collection of footage. If the balance is struck however, we can end up with a blast of a film that entertains the viewers at least as much as the filmmakers were entertained making it. Thankfully, "Boyz in the Wood" gets it so, so right.

The closest reference of what one could expect coming into this movie is Taika Waititi's brilliant hit "Hunt for the Wilderpeople". Like the NZ film, here we have a showcase of the rugged scenery of the country (the Scottish Highlands in this case) serving as the backdrop for a crazy story involving too-urban-for-the-bush, hip-hop obsessed, cursing teens and overzealous, bored police, along with other random characters that are more set-ups for the next punchline and crazy plot point than they are "real people living in their world" (and there's nothing wrong with that). There's some "Hot Fuzz" (and general Edgar Wright-ness) thrown in for good measure what with its very exaggerated conflict of old and traditional British values and the new generations taken to the extreme and the "big-budget Hollywood flair in small-budget Britain" attitude. Ridiculous psychotropic imagery that is the natural step after the cartoony drug sequences of "21/22 Jump Street" finishes off the cocktail.

If this review comes off as more of a list of references than an analysis of the film, that is because this is not the kind of movie that invites that depth of thought (although like with all forms of art, if you dig you'll find, and there's plenty to dig here with the very old-fashioned villains chasing our young protagonists, echoes of young Scots' ever-stronger desire for independence resounding through the glen, but... meh). This ride is wild, hilarious, brave in its indifference to convention and best when served cold, without too clear an idea what to expect. The previous references are little more than an "if you enjoyed these titles, we suggest the following" algorithm, if you DID enjoy the previous titles, you definitely want be in the hunt for this new game.

P.S., while the soundtrack is brilliant, I must say that for a hip-hop-heavy, Scottish film, this was sadly light on Young Fathers and thus one of the reasons for the just-less-than-perfect score.

I went in to this not expecting much, and knowing it's not exactly high brow humor, but I completely underestimated it. Absolutely hilarious, and gets better as it goes. I can't remember the last time I was genuinely trying to catch my breath from laughing so hard. 100% recommend if you're in the mood for a silly movies.

Like a marriage between League of Gentlemen, Psychoville and Sightseers, with a sprinkling of Four Lions, it's a smart dumb stoner comedy from a scattershot, twisted amateur with a laminated certificate

Be warned - it takes most of the film to reach the above conclusion. Up to that point, you wouldn't be wrong in saying it misses the mark. It has a familiar feeling, with nothing new to bring to comedy-horror, but its young cast act well, and add to a slow-burning story