drew-15194

A 30+ actor playing an 18 year old freshman just doesn't work, and there are multiple examples in this tiresome vanity project. The laugh lines at the mouth and crows feet at the eyes are dead giveaways. There are tons of younger actors who could have played these characters. And they should have if it weren't a vanity project.

It sucks because the idea could have been good in better hands. Meaning without cliches from the 1980s, without cardboard characters - almost all of whom are moronic or unlikable, and without random flesh exposure that is pointless to the story, plot, and characters. 2 stars only. Overall this is a sad waste of time.

I liked the film's focus on what the earth might have been like just 20,000 years ago. And in this respect the film is imaginative and thoughtful. It's a film both adults and children can get into. And the main actor Kodi, his dad, and the wolf are all top notch performers that you root for.

The director seems enamored of The Seventh Seal by Bergman, as we get repetitive uses of a line of characters in silhouette against scenery. And the scenery, while beautiful, gets to be tedious after a while - too many vistas dilute their power. Still they mostly add rather than distract. There are several ham-handed choices that are more aggregious. Like painting lip whiskers on Kodi to suddenly indicate he is maturing 😆 and the last surprise, which makes no sense for two characters that have shared everything together. But these lame mistakes don't lessen the original goal of engaging the imagination, which is achieved.