The Wild: fathers and sons

I took Isaac and Anna to see The Wild this afternoon and really enjoyed it. It has a number of similarities to Madagascar, but I think The Wild is better. I’ll leave reviews to the professionals; what I want to comment on are the father/son relationships presented in the movie. (I should note, too, that my comments will probably contain spoilers, so if you haven’t seen the film and don’t want any surprises ruined, then read another post.)

The story focuses on the lion Samson, the pride of the New York Zoo, and his son Ryan. Samson regales Ryan with stories of his fearlessness back in the wild and is teaching him to roar; unfortunately, Ryan can’t pull it off, producing only loud meows. Feeling like a failure compared to his father’s immense reputation, Ryan heads off to find “the wild.” Too late, he changes his mind, and Samson follows to rescue him. As Samson and his friends pursue Ryan, we discover that Samson’s not as fearless as he appears, and we learn that he has a secret. At a crucial point in the story, Samson, reunited with his son, tells Ryan that he never lived in the wild, and that he failed to roar when he most needed to as a cub. In the flashback, we see Samson separated from his father, and we see the disappointment of the father as well.

The Wild offers clear illustrations of a number of ideas in Eldredge’s Wild at Heart: the wound that’s frequently passed from father to son, the need to discover/recover the wildness within the masculine heart. What I appreciated about this movie is that while Ryan is initially disappointed that his father lied to him, he doesn’t hold it against him very long at all. In fact, soon after, he says to Samson, “I’m sorry you didn’t have a dad like I have.” And we see Samson become what he was created to be: a fearless lion.

I can relate to Samson; I feel like I’m learning how to do the whole “man” thing along with Zack, my oldest; I’m blessed that Zack, like Ryan, is not the kind to hold my failures against me and that he recognizes I’m learning too.

On the way home from a movie, I always ask the kids to tell what they liked best. For The Wild, Isaac, not surprisingly, picked one of the silly moments (a break-dancing wildebeest). I was very much surprised, though, that Anna said her favorite part was when we learn about Samson’s childhood failure in front of his father. I asked her why she chose that part; she said, “Because it was sad and because we see what happened to the daddy lion.” Smart little girl!

Samson’s saving grace is that he has a real, ongoing relationship with his son. It’s not his supposed “wildness” that makes him a great father; it’s his daily interaction with Ryan. I use grace purposely: I’ve come to realize that my ability to spend a lot of time with my children is a gift, a grace from God. I’ve learned that regular interaction and a ready willingness to say “I’m sorry” make up for a host of hurts and mistakes. The Wild illustrates this beautifully.

Tagged as: fathers, grace, John-Eldredge, movies, parenting, sons