“A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder; fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won; the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man.”
The story of the hero’s journey is told over and over again and Campbell dedicated his entire life to the study of why this story, and stories like it, have such a visceral effect on mankind. There have been many movies to use this formula as their platform, but few have done it as well as writer/director Nikolai Lebedev in his most recent release, Wolfhound (Volkodav iz roda Serykh Psov — its Russian title). Bearing a striking resemblance, on the surface at least, to Conan: The Barbarian, it begins in an idyllic little village where a young boy is watching his father, the town’s blacksmith, create a sword. Along comes his pregnant mother to show her unending devotion to her husband and son. A few moments later the boy’s father is killed for precisely that sword and he watches as his mother dies at the hands of a man with a wolf tattoo on his hand. Immediately the boy is jerked away from everything he knows to a slave camp, and Wolfhound is born. We meet back up with Wolfhound again many years later when he is a man systematically seeking revenge for his family’s murder. He has become a great fighter and a good man. As he travels in search of the man with the tattoo he becomes embroiled in the struggle of a princess and her family, eventually agreeing to be her bodyguard. This is treacherous, however, because the princess’s blood is what is needed to open a gate and let out ultimate evil. There is a good deal of magic involved, he of course falls for the girl (who also falls hopelessly for him) and then in the third act there’s a giant stone owl and God literally comes out of the machine. It really is a spectacular movie.
All of the talent in this movie is wonderful and because I didn’t know any of them from any previous work it only added to this movie’s ability to capture me. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that the most compelling character in this movie is actually a sidekick. It’s not what you think. It’s not a plucky foreign guy with a funny accent who gets kicked around a lot, but proves useful in the end. It’s a bat. A bat named Ragged Wing. And he’s the best thing ever. Not only is it completely new on the landscape of film, but it was adorable AND hilarious. It was never used for pluck and it never hit a wrong note. They never used its being hurt to manipulate you. It was like a Disney sidekick, without the Disney. And if you can’t imagine that then it’s all the more reason to RUN and see this movie where ever you can.
In all honesty what makes this movie great is the lack of the Hollywood studio system. It seems that the studios are so wrapped up in what might sell and which star they can vehicle with which project, that they haven’t stopped to think about what might actually connect with an audience. I really can’t remember the last time I connected with a movie in this way. It doesn’t go the way you expect and when you think that you might know what comes next, it takes a different turn. The good guy is, actually, a very good guy and you identify with his struggle, even if you’ve never been a slave who had to fight himself free. Frankly, I was very disappointed to know that — as far as I can see — the only reason this movie couldn’t have gala-ed at TIFF is that it’s Russian. Which in case no one else has noticed, is where the truly great stories are coming from these days. It was not long ago that I was captured in both Night Watch and Day Watch. Russia has a great deal of opportunity when it comes to making movies. There is a wealth of talent; there are no end of spaces to shoot in; and there is no specific motive to make a movie other than to actually tell a story. I think Russia is the one to watch. Quite frankly, it’s only because of festivals like Toronto After Dark that movies like this can even be seen. Joseph Campbell would be pleased.
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