A ten-year-old boy learns to take flight
Jojo (Rick Lens) is a sparkling, vivacious 10-year-old boy with a far from easy home life: his father (Loek Peters) is sometimes kind of violent and very moody, and his mother is downright absent, which hurts him very much. It hurts the father too, but he won’t let his feelings surface.
One day, Jojo finds a baby jackdaw that fell from his nest. His father won’t let him keep it, he says animals belong out in the open and he doesn’t want Jojo to get attached to it (and here’s a clue regarding the strained family situation).
Nonetheless, the kid keeps the jackdaw in strict secrecy, feeds him daily, watches him grow, and also teaches him how to fly. Most important: the bird becomes his closest friend, and in time it may help to bring down the wall that separates father and son.
Kauwboy is shot in a naturalistic fashion, but not so much because of its aesthetics (the atmospheric, alluring cinematography is not that realistic but subtly stylized), but rather because of how it captures the everyday moments in Jojo’s life with no sense of spectacle at all.
The narrative is well paced, detailed, and meticulous as to give viewers not only an overall view of the scenario, but also of its fragments. So, in this way you get to accompany and empathize with Jojo along his road toward a more satisfying life, and in the meantime you share some special moments.
From a formal point of view, the camera, often hand-held, may be the greatest asset along with the photography. It’s not that easy to be so close to a kid and have him perform as naturally as he does here. As for the father, it’s good to see that he’s been depicted as neither a bad guy nor a good one. Basically, he’s a man in pain for the absence of his wife and at odds when trying to relate to his son.
However, both Jojo and the father could have been more developed characters, with some shades that would add depth and complexity. For the most part, they move forward the story, but even with its new incidents they don’t acquire new layers. Neither does the film. Some scenes are clichéd and too cute. And while the editing is fine, a stronger dramatic drive would have turned Kauwboy into a gripping film.
All in all, it’s enjoyable, affable and it has a somewhat surprising ending that metaphorically says that in order to start over, you first have to bury the past once and for all, and only then get ready for a brighter today.
PRODUCTION NOTES
Kauwboy (Netherlands, 2012). Directed by Boudewijn Koole. Written by: Jolein Laarman, Boudewijn Koole. With: Rick Lens, Loek Peters, Susan Radder, Cahit Ölmez, Ricky Koole. Music by: Helge Slikker. Cinematography by: Daniël Bouquet. Produced by: Waterland Film & TV / NTR. Running time: 74 minutes.
