I saw Beasts of the Southern Wild the other night at The Landmark with some friends from work. Feeling very "filmy" I have to say I really enjoyed the surrealist Sundance hit. It's what I would call an intuitive movie; to verbalize much of what goes on in the world of young Hush Puppy, a six-year-old girl who lives with her father in the fictional New Orleans adjacent bayou called The Bathtub, is to trivialize much of what you experience through her eyes.
The wide-eyed wonder blended with fierce determination and strength of will of young Quvenzhané Wallis is riveting as Hush Puppy and her father played by Dwight Henry, is more three dimensional than the standard tough-love daddy. The story of the people of The Bathtub is told through the adventures of young Hush Puppy and her daddy, trying to weather a storm that submerges their world in brackish water. 
As we follow their desperate attempt to restore their home and the community of The Bathtub, we feel the obvious Katrina undertones, but nothing feels forced, the story remains foremost in our minds and any political commentary is achieved through the emotional reactions the story elicits. I don't want to discuss too much of the plot as I feel this is simply a film to be experienced, not analyzed. I will merely add that in addition to being an entertaining and well written film, it is well cast with unknowns who absolutely look the part, and some of the fanciful, surrealist moments boast beautiful cinematography. All in all, a good film. Check out their site for where to catch the film: http://www.beastsofthesouthernwild.com/screenings or wait to catch it on Netflix.
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