Big Game   Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Onni Tommila, Felicity Huffman, Victor Garber, Ted Levine, Jim Broadbent and Ray Stevenson Distributor: eOne RRP: £17.99 EO51892D 5030305518929 Certificate: 15 Release Date: 21 September 2015

On the eve of Oskari’s birthday he has to undergo the same ritual that his people have undertaken for countless generations. To prove his worth as both a man and a hunter he has to travel alone into the wilderness of Finland to hunt, his prize will prove his courage. At the same time the President of the United States is travelling, on Airforce One, to attend a conference when his plane is attacked and the President is ejected in an escape pod into the same wilderness. Discovered by Oskari, the two have to survive both the wilderness and the hunters trying to kill the President...

Big Game (2014 - 1 hr, 26 min, 45 sec) is a Finish thriller directed by Jalmari Helander, only his second major feature. The film is the most expensive Finish film yet made.

I can see a lot of undeserved hate heading toward this film because of audiences expectations and misunderstanding that this is going to be a big Hollywood blockbuster because the President is played by Samuel L. Jackson, when in fact it is really a rites of passage movie for Oskari.

Oskari (Onni Tommila) starts the film unsure of his own ability to survive the wilderness, let alone bring back the head of a bear like his father had done. In truth, his father also has the same concerns and so prearranges an animal head for him to find.

The President meanwhile is safe in his plane, or so he thinks. As both a man and as a President William Moore is not only unpopular but also consider to be an extremely weak man. See where the film is going with this one? Two weak characters pitted against the cold and the killers... It does not take a genius to work out that they will not only survive but emerge stronger than ever.

The film has the advantage of a good supporting cast, including Ray Stevenson, who plays Moore the CIA agent who orchestrates the downing of the plane. Seems he had already been shot in the line of duty and like Iron Man has a sliver of metal making its way to his heart. Selling out the President to the mercenary Haza (Mehmet Kurtulus) has the added benefit of him getting revenge on a man he despises and giving him a nice slice of filthy blood money as a goodbye gift.

The film has a B plot involving the CIA headquarters, including Jim Broadbent as a CIA analyst, Victor Garber as the vice President and Felicity Huffman as the CIA director, who spend their time tracking events on the ground, while slowly revealing that Moore might not have been working alone.

As a thriller, it hit all its marks with a good mixture of special effects, set pieces, humour and action. Like I said at the top of the piece this is really Oskari’s story and the level of mild violence would make it suitable for a young teenage story. That age group would probably get a real kick out of a thirteen year old being the hero of the story.

For audio you have a choice of either a 5.1 or 2.0 DD track, the former makes good use of the space and so if you have the option, that’s the one to go for. The disc also contains English subtitles. There are only two extras on the disc, interviews with the cast and crew, eleven in all, mostly lasting between a minute and a half to two and a half minutes long. None are particularly substantial, but there a nice addition to the package. You also get a special effects breakdown (2 min, 45 sec) which covers the crash of Airforce One and its subsequent destruction.

7

Charles Packer