The good old-fashioned family adventure is a genre unto itself, and one worth celebrating when kid-friendly films as good as “Bookworm” open events like Fantasia Fest 2024.
Director Ant Timpson and writer Toby Harvard reunite for their second scrappy feature following the 2019 cult horror hit “Come to Daddy.” This time, they’ve cast repeat collaborator Elijah Wood as a low-rent American magician (excuse me, “illusionist”) and an absentee dad who is suddenly conscripted back into parental service by an emergency overseas. For this crowd-pleasing comedy, the camera finds the former “Lord of the Rings” hero once again crawling the stunning landscapes of New Zealand — only here, Wood is part of a father-daughter odd couple and, acting opposite plucky kid hero Nell Fisher, he plays against Frodo-type as neither the short nor the brave one.
In this quietly epic tale of slow-won forgiveness and mutual understanding, the not-so-mystical Shawn Wise (exquisite name) and his estranged 11-year-old, Mildred (Fisher), are forced to reconnect when a faulty toaster puts the girl’s mom (Morgana O’Reilly) in the hospital. The single Kiwi parent was doing her best to keep things afloat before the accident, but working three jobs and making the most of whatever passes for a magician’s alimony wasn’t enough for her and Mildred financially. Enter the Canterbury Panther, a local legend worth $50,000 to anyone who can deliver video proof of the stealthy cat supposedly stalking New Zealanders for food… and fun.
Our titular bookworm — so named, Timpson says, for the Anthony Hopkins’ survival flick “The Edge” (which, once upon a time, was also titled “Bookworm”) — Mildred isn’t like most kids. Fast-talking and sarcastic with a vocabulary that could rival the Rosetta Stone, her character resembles a hybrid of other PG-rated heroes; think a more affable Artemis Fowl meets a far less affable Russell from “Up.” But in the real world, complete with sobering science facts, sensible outdoor gear, and an outrageous plan to build a better future, Mildred could just as easily be compared to an Auckland-based Greta Thunberg. (Although, in the grand tradition of time passing, it’s worth pointing out that the Swedish activist is now 21.)
As the pair ventures into the wilderness in search of evidence, Strawn emerges not as Mildred’s chaperone but as her ill-fitting sidekick. Black nail polish and the utterly baffling decision to wear a leather jacket on a multi-day hike betray him as something of a well-meaning hack who, even with the best intentions, has no business taking a kid out camping. Sure, there’s that adage about not judging a book by its cover, but when forced onto the same situational shelf, Strawn and Mildred are about as complementary as a novelty spell book keychain and 26 volumes in an encyclopedic tome. An early misunderstanding about David Copperfield (which David Copperfield, you might ask? Yikes!) draws attention to the duo’s vast divide as the reality of Strawn’s years-long absence gets harder to ignore. Those recognizable pain points set up a dynamic known all too well in kids’ films, asking: What do you do when your flake of a father finally shows up, but you’re the one still teaching him?
That slanted bad parent-good child characterization too often results in movies featuring kids who are, if not outright cruel, pretty freakin’ mean to their weirdo parents. Mildred has flecks of genuine hostility in her voice, but Harvard’s surprisingly delicate script and Timpson’s steady direction never let that get away from their young performer. Fisher (set to star in “Stranger Things” Season 5, and it’s easy to see why) delivers her lines not just with the zippy acceptability we’ve come to expect from actors her age, but with a sensitive complexity that infuses good-enough lines with honest reads that suggest real talent.
Exposition in excess is demanded by the film’s younger audience, who could get lost in the plot without Mildred condescendingly re-explaining events we’ve just seen unfold to her bewildered dad, always still piecing things together. But it’s a testament to the actors’ chemistry and Harvard’s writing that these chunkier moments seem more like snide refrains than a potentially annoying narrative framework. Battling the vastness of being outside, Fisher more than keeps up with the elastic Wood in her explosive physicality — brightly skipping through breathtaking scenes like just another native animal captured through cinematographer Daniel Katz’s keen lens.
The director of photography, who also brought his discerning eye to Timpson’s “Come to Daddy,” more than shows up for “Bookworm,” rendering the dangerous New Zealand environment as a third character for Mildred and Strawn to love, endure, and experience. Katz and Timpson work through a treasure trove of genre references here with subtle nods to old-school classics like “Swiss Family Robinson” and “The Adventures of the Wilderness Family.” Apparent but never overwhelming, the cinematic styling of “Bookworm” gifts audiences the rare treat of a movie that appreciates not only the transporting quality of a well-done aspect ratio shift but also the sheer entertainment power of a well-placed fart joke.
Tying all that together is Wood, who, even stuck in the poster’s background, remains an undeniable movie star. There’s one scene set at twilight (it’s breathtaking, maybe Katz’s best, and oddly evocative of “Dune”?) that sees Strawn exhausted by his current circumstance but still caught up with the shameful skeletons in his self-obsessed closet. Wood works through the tender and funny fireside monologue with a deadpan seriousness wholly committed to through Fisher’s sparkling eyes and sound design that seems to emanate from beyond the horizon. In that moment, everything that makes “Bookworm” a piece of earnestly great, and maybe even timeless, filmmaking snaps into focus.
Fans of Timpson can spy more references as “Bookworm” routinely ties itself back to the filmmaker’s hyper-violent horror debut. Small details, like the use of the name “Reginald” or Wood showing up wearing a god-awful hat, seem more worthy of discussion than any of the film’s vaguely overlapping themes about parenting. “Come to Daddy” character actor Michael Smiley stands out, arriving midway through Mildred and Strawn’s journey as a friendly heart surgeon out on a hike who livens things up with a twist even adults won’t see coming. With near-perfect pacing and a gob-smacking density of punchlines, “Bookworm” is the sort of movie that will make you excited to repeatedly whisper, “Remember THAT?” — when you catch your breath from laughing (maybe even crying?), and the credits finally roll on a winding adventure that’s very Timpson and yet one of a kind.
Fearlessly specific in its comedy and just as attentive with its character arcs, this algebraic study in adventure might have a metaphoric typo or two (insert obligatory comment about CGI), but it’s mostly a triumph. Adorable, complex, and deliriously entertaining, Timpson’s second feature is nothing short of a testament to giving yourself artistic whiplash with polar-opposite projects that need many of the same skills. With the knowledge that their connection as father and daughter hasn’t meant much before now, Mildred and Strawn’s story is ultimately about getting to know each other as people. As a sophomore effort, “Bookworm” serves a similar purpose — letting Timpson fans know him more completely as a textbook genre champion and masterful cinematic appreciator of deadbeat dads.
Grade: A-
“Bookworm” premiered at 2024 Fantasia Festival. The film releases in its native New Zealand on August 8 from Rialto Distribution. It will be distributed by Vertical in the U.S. and by Photon Films in Canada later this year.
