The True Adventures of Wolfboy isn’t afraid to explore social anxiety and discrimination around gender identity, and the intersections between those experiences and the kids who find themselves isolated and bullied due to facial or bodily differences. The True Adventures of Wolfboy will be available on all major streaming platforms starting on March 15th.
In a world obsessed with the next Marvel movie or who’s next to wear the bat suit on film, you could be forgiven for thinking that heroes only exist in the pages of a comic book. However, heroes come in all shapes and sizes and walk among us daily. These everyday heroes don’t have special powers, emblems or secret identities; their superpower is their courage, conviction, and belief in a better world. But who are these heroes? Well, they are all those children and adults who survive bullying, celebrate their difference or disability and shout “This is me” from the highest rooftop.
These fantastic people surround us as we go about our daily lives. They shine with individuality and never allow others to bring them crashing down. Occasionally, a movie comes along that places these heroes centre stage. Martin Krejcí‘s The True Adventures of Wolfboy, written by Olivia Dufault, is one of those rare and beautiful gems, combining elements of Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands with Collodi’s Pinocchio.
Thirteen-year-old Paul (Jaeden Martell) lives like a recluse with his single dad (Chris Messina) in their small house under a large freeway. Paul’s room is a sanctuary from the bullies surrounding him, his only comfort, a knitted balaclava that hides his condition from the world when he dares to step outside. He is no ordinary teenage boy; he is unique, beautiful and covered in thick hair. Paul has Hypertrichosis, otherwise known as Werewolf Syndrome, a condition that he has lived with since birth.
Paul loves his dad, but he misses his mum, who disappeared after his birth, and he dreams of finding her again, while his dad struggles to help him overcome his anxiety and the relentless bullying he faces. Due to that bullying, and not knowing where else to turn, Paul’s dad suggests a special boarding school for ‘different kids’. But as Paul reluctantly tries on his new school uniform, a mysterious birthday gift sits on his bedside table: a note and a map from his mum, inviting him to find her in Pennsylvania. Without a thought, Paul leaves the house and the safety and security his dad offers, holding the map. But not everything is as it first appears.
As he travels alone through the night, and his home falls further and further into shadow, Paul is unprepared for the world that awaits him – a world of darkness and light, fear and hope and danger and belonging. By the second day, he quickly falls under the corrupt guidance and uneasy protection of the dangerous circus owner Mr Silk (John Turturro), who seeks to use Paul for his own financial benefit, and suddenly the road ahead seems hazardous and uncertain. Here, the circus becomes a prison from which he must escape at all costs.
Following his escape, Paul meets Aristiana (Sophie Giannamore), a trans girl fighting her own battle for acceptance, who speaks directly to the complexity of his own journey, offering him a hand of friendship and a sense of belonging. But while Paul may think he has left the circus behind, Mr Silk has other plans.
Sitting at the heart of Olivia Dufault’s fantastical tale is a love letter to Collodi’s Pinocchio, in which Paul faces similar trials and tribulations on a journey toward freedom and acceptance, both social and individual. Even Paul’s opening lines reflect Collodi’s story as he says, “I’m normal, I’m a regular kid; I’m just like everyone else.” However, Olivia Dufault’s modern fairytale, while honouring Collodi’s classic, also incorporates a far more contemporary discussion of social isolation, identity, and the young people who continue to be used as political pawns by politicians.
The True Adventures of Wolfboy isn’t afraid to explore social anxiety and discrimination around gender identity, and the intersections between those experiences and the kids who find themselves isolated and bullied due to facial or bodily differences.
Aristiana becomes Paul’s guardian angel, first love, and support as they share the experience of being judged by a society that likes to dictate body image, gender identity and concepts of what is ‘normal’ based on bigotry and bile. Here, Martin Krejcí’s fantasy is rooted in the lived experience of kids who hide from sight, are afraid of the bullies that stalk playgrounds and who endure the barrage of adult discrimination that tells them they aren’t normal.
At the heart of this fantastical yet grounded exploration of fear, hope and belonging are the superb performances of Martell, Giannamore and Hewson and a clear message: whether our differences lie in colour, gender, sexuality, appearance, or ability, we are stronger when we fight together in a world that seeks to divide us.
Follow Us