Boyz in the Wood

1) If you wanna enjoy this movie, lower your expectations, this is not a 10/10, 9/10, neither a MUST SEE movie. I wouldn't call it hilarious, even though there are some scenes that i laughed hard, and, definitely, this is not scary, gory or intense.

2) However, it's funny and enjoyable. Maybe younger people will enjoy it more. I am not young, still i enjoyed it. Characters are very likeable, music is good, this movie doesn't take itself too seriously, and if you are in the mood for a movie like this, you will have fun watching it. Don't expect a comedy-horror movie, it's more farcical than horror. Young actors did a fine job.

3) The ending is great. In fact, as the movie progressed, it was getting funnier and funnier. I would definitely watch a sequel.

Teenager adventure is always a good theme for comedy. And this movie is seriously funny. A bit absurd, unconventional, strange, but funny nevertheless.

At first I thought I wouldn't like this. Because they show the first 3 protagonist in a way that they were unlikeable. But that's how it supposed to be. Our main character are 3 problematic teens and 1 ordinary teen that forced to work together. And they team up wonderfully in the end.

The scenery is beautiful. The acting is good. The jokes are amusing. This is a good movie to watch after a long day and you need entertainment.

This film was the opening gala for the Edinburgh Film Festival and definitely deserved the accolade. Quirky and experimental it has many laugh out loud moments in a truly original spin on the old story of city boys surviving in the wild.The director and writer Ninian Doff has a rare original talent and is definitely someone to watch. You can see his music video influences throughout the film giving it a fresh and pacey vibe. A very talented British cast make the most of the heddy mix of horror and outrageous comedy with Kate Dickie and James Cosmo standouts along with the 4 newcomers playing the boys. Surreal and wild this film has an energy that will make you feel you are on a drug induced high. Highly recommended.

Being Scottish, this movie definately resonated with me. Dodgy spiked weed, a hugely divisive social class system, and magic mushrooms - we got it all! Its part of that genre of movies Surviving The Game belonged to. Its a genre with a number of recent examples, this one being my favourite. It really feels like a Scottish movie. Reminds me a bit of Bad Taste or The Wicker Man (original title), those homegrown genre movies made with a vibe of the local people producing them, rather than a big budget hollywood group coming in and trying to do it for them. DJ Beetroot was a highlight; so may disinfranchised young asian lads aspiring towards rap in the city of Edinburgh these days, that really struck a cord. The take on the mushroom trip was funny and kinda accurate, as far as I remember from taking them as a young lad. Its a rite of passage, part of being Scottish. The ending also really worked for me, all round a great wee movie, its very funny.

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.