Huffington Magazine Issue 2 | Page 92

Exit ROM A DISTANCE, Beasts of the Southern Wild bears zero resemblance to the typical Oscar contender. It’s neither an adaptation of a literary bestseller nor a biopic about an iconic yet misunderstood historical figure. It doesn’t hearken back with nostalgic affection to Hollywood’s Golden Era, nor does it have a single thing to say about World War II or the Holocaust. Its director has no recognizable credits to his name, and its stars, if you can call them that, give new meaning to the term “unknowns.” One works as a baker in New Orleans; the other is years away from finishing grade school. Yet for all that, this staggeringly cathartic film may well figure in the Oscar equation this winter, scoring nominations in any or all of the following categories: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor, Best Original Score, and maybe even Best Actress, which would make newcomer Quvenzhané Wallis the youngest nominee ever. (Justin Henry, who was eight when Kramer vs. Kramer came out, is the current record-holder.) Beasts of the Southern Wild is MOVIES CINEREACH LTD F the brainchild of first-time filmmaker Benh Zeitlin, 29, who grew up in Queens and later moved to New Orleans. He pieced the script together over the course of eight months, spending much of that time in the remote South Louisiana fishing villages of Terrebone Parish. The resulting film offers an intoxicating vision of a community beyond the edges of civilization, with all the free- HUFFINGTON 06.24.12