Titreenp SERIOUSLY. This is what the crap Hollywood still puts out?

ScoobyWell Great visuals, story delivers no surprises

Ketrivie It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

AshUnow This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Dominic LeRose Indpent films rarely posses as much visual beauty and poignant literary techniques as "Beasts of the Southern Wild," a gem of a movie that encompasses philosophical questions about the meaning of life and will have you moved from start to finish. Faced with both her hot-tempered father's fading health and melting ice-caps that flood her ramshackle bayou community and unleash ancient aurochs, six-year-old Hushpuppy must learn the ways of courage and love. Thisn movie seems to be all over the place for most of the film, and took me a couple viewings to truly understand the beauty and meaning behind the film. No worries. This masterpiece of visual and written art by young filmmaker Ben Zeitlen tests traditional summer movies and gives you a film that causes a wide range of emotions and excites the eyes due to the gorgeous cinematography and marvelous directorial skills by a young and talented wizard of cinema.

Leofwine_draca BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD is an odd, one-of-a-kind story that tells of the relationship between a young black girl and her hobo-style father. The two of them live a hand-to-mouth existence in a kind of shanty town in the Louisiana bayous, but when their world comes crashing down due to a flood they must embark on a journey of survival.I had no idea what to make of this love-it-or-hate-it movie but I enjoyed up enjoying it, for what it's worth. The lack of reason or explanation of events is a little irritating for a viewer who likes concrete facts, but the style of the thing, all magic realist, is quite entrancing. It turns that the fantasy elements of the story involving the huge aurochs is secondary to what turns out to be an intimate story of the little girl and her father. Non-actor Dwight Henry's intense performance makes the film although Quvenzhane Wallis deserves kudos for bringing to life an enchanting central character.

Horst in Translation (filmreviews@web.de) and it became the youngest Academy Award nominee for her marvelous performance here. Thumbs up for Quvenzhané Wallis in Benh Zeitlin's first feature film. This was one of the big winners once the nominations were announced. Apart from Wallis and a screenplay nod, the film also managed to get in for Best Picture and Zeitlin as director over notable competition from Bigelow, Nolan, Affleck and Hooper. To me the film almost felt like a documentary about the little girl's life and interactions with people, mostly her father, played competently by Dwight Henry. Maybe this was also as Hushpuppy did not speak much in the film itself, but narrated it. These people are maybe the most interesting thing about the film. They have their very own mentality, unique ways of life and survival constantly battling dangerous water. The early firework scene with Hushpuppy running is one of the most memorable shots.Another thing I found interesting was the way how these people interacted with nature, with water of course, but also with plants and animals. The film's audio effects are nothing short of great from start to finish: ringing bells, sparkling fire, wild water and many more. As I witnessed a flood not too long ago, this film also had a bit of a different impact than the first time I watched it. The relationship between Hushpuppy and her father is pretty memorable. Even if he is rough, slaps her at one point (well, she burnt down the house) and scares her at another, he is a loving father who only wants the best for his daughter. He is very rough, but also very caring. I remember one scene where he tells her that she will be the king of the Bathtub one day. Pay attention how he does not say queen. He really isn't about her being a playful little girl, but more a practical human being. Her hair fits that characterization nicely too. When they are at the hospital later on, she looks like a girl, but obviously she won't act like one.After the introduction to Hushpuppy's world, the film is basically all about the fights of the people. But at the same time, it is also about how the strength of their community helps them to cope with these issues. One fight is against the water. One is against those who want them to go away. And the last one is against sickness. And even if this one is lost, the ending is very hopeful and uplifting after the truly sad farewell scene thanks to Hushpuppy's final words and the music when the closing credits roll in. It's also interesting that there is really no bad people in this movie, only people who act like they are supposed to or in order to have what (they think) is best for them, even the hospital employees who mostly want to help, even if the group around Hushpuppy doesn't really see it and refuses their help, especially Hushpuppy's dad. I also really liked the song that played when little Hushpuppy was dancing with the waitress. The lyrics fit their dialog perfectly."Beasts of the Sounthern Wild" is a good film with more strengths than weaknesses and lots of interesting metaphors (the auroxen in particular) and I recommend watching it.

bowtietrucker1 Beasts of The Southern Wild, was a film, about a community, a community that lived on a partially flooded levy, which they referred to as the "Bathtub". This small town used to serve as an actual city until most of it flooded, and drove away most of the population. A small community is all that remains. Dwight Henry (Character name Wink) was an actor in the film along with Quvenzhané Wallis (Character name Hushpuppy). Wink is Hushpuppy's father; Hushpuppy believes that all living things talk to her through code. She is seen putting her hear up to living animals to hear their heart beat, believing this is them talking to her in code. The theme to this movie seems to be a coming of age theme. Wink explains to Hushpuppy the main reason for living is survival, and that nothing else matters. While Hushpuppy struggles to understand what surviving is, she knows why she has to survive. The lighting had a huge effect on the theme of this movie. Certain scenes depending on the mood of Hushpuppy were dark and gloomy, making Hushpuppy seem sad or lost as in what to do. A good example of this would be the scene when the storm was coming she seemed scared and unsure of what to do. Another technique in the movie was camera angle, as Hushpuppy would stare out into the ocean, the angle would be wide showing her and the wide open ocean. It was as if she had a different calling in life, but was unsure of what it was, or when it would come. She knew there was something out there for her, but being so young she didn't know how to purse what she though was out there. All she knew was that in order to find what she was looking for, she had to survive.