Genre: Drama/Fantasy
Director: Spike Jonze
Writer: Seth Overton
Based on the graphic novel
Cast: Elijah Wood, Rory McCann, Jeffrey Wright, Michael Rooker, Madeline Brewer, Rupert Grint, Colin Hanks, Michael Stuhlbarg
Plot: In a not so distant future, the world had been devastated by an terrible pandemic. Gus (Elijah Wood) is born a with a mutated gene, causing him to be born with antlers and the ears of a deer. He lives in the deep woods with his deeply religious and overly protective father, Richard (Michael Stuhlbarg) who, after his mother's death, taught him how to survive in their tiny safe haven.
One day, Gus heads out to the forest to grab wood for the winter. He thinks about how he hasn't seen anyone in his whole life besides his father. He suddenly spots a candy bar just outside the fence. He considers crossing to get it but decides to stay inside the Sanctuary limits.
He thinks it is strange that his dad makes him stay inside the fence. His father claims that there is a hellfire that burns outside of the wood's walls and they need to stay inside to protect themselves. Gus thinks about how he's been to the edge and has never seen the fires, but never dares to cross.
At dinner that night, his father coughs up blood, but assures him it will be fine.
The next day Gus heads out to play with a wooden scarecrow. He sees the candy bar once more, but this time decides to jump over the fence and take it. After eating the candy bar, curiosity gets the best of him and decides to explore further outside of his safe zone. However, he doesn't get far before stepping into a trap that causes a net to ensnare him above the ground.
Two hunters approach him. Gus is both scared and fascinated at the same time, as he has never seen another person except for his parents. He tells them he got trapped and asks them if they could kindly help him out. One of the hunters consults a piece of paper in his breast pocket and smiles greedily. They both approach Gus, when a swift arrow pierces through one of their necks. The other one has no time to react as another arrow follows quickly after. Gus looks up, as the faint autumn sun reveals an imposing figure. The man (Rory McCann) releases him from the trap and offers to accompany him home in exchange for some supplies. He introduces himself as Jepperd.
When they arrive at his house, Gus sees his father collapsed on the floor. He frantically tries to wake him up, but Jepperd tells him he has no pulse.
With no place to go to, Jepperd agrees to take Gus to a place called "The Preserve" a supposed safe haven for hybrids like himself. They take whatever supplies they can from his home, bury his father and then take off.
During their trip, Jepperd tries to teach Gus how to hunt, but Gus refuses, telling him he could never hurt or eat another living thing. He instead chooses to eat whatever sweets they find in abandoned outposts, which earns him the nickname "Sweet Tooth" from Jepperd. He tells him however that in this day and age, morality is a luxury, survival is everything, and one day or another he is going to have to do things he is not happy with. As they approach the preserve, they meet another hybrid, a pig-hybrid girl named Wendy (Madeline Brewer) which joins them in their journey.
One day, while Jepperd is out hunting, a wild animal attacks Wendy which prompts Gus to kill the animal in self defense, something he vouched never to do. After this experience, Jepperd's teachings of survival tended to resonate a bit more.
As the first snowflakes started to fall on the ground and the first days of winters came, the forest became an even less hospitable place and the group realized they had to pick up the pace. They start spending the nights in different outposts or even in an abandoned vehicle they found by the road, which unfortunately was not in working condition. Jepperd tells them they are about to meet a contact of his which will take them to the Preserve, a man named Abbott (Michael Rooker).
One night, they find an outpost with a fireplace and a bottle of whisky. Jepperd offers Gus and Wendy their first ever drink. They both hate the taste. They gather around the fire and talk about their previous life. Gus talks about his father. After finding some ice skating boots in the outpost, and a few glasses later, a usually stoic and guarded Jepperd reveals he was once a hockey player, but then has to explain to them what hockey actually is. He then talks about his wife and how he hopes to recover her remains and bury her, hoping this will bring him peace. Finally, Wendy reveals she was living at an orphanage before it closed down. Her parents abandoned her there because of her deformity. Gus gives her a comforting hug.
Another night, they go to a frozen lake and Jepperd tries to teach them how to ice skate.
After a few tough weeks, in which Gus became sick because of the dropping temperature, things were looking up. It was the day in which they were finally meeting up with Abbott. As Jepperd was approaching the man, something did not feel right for Gus. Jeppard takes out a piece of paper similar to that of the first hunter. Abbott signals two men on horses that grab Gus and Wendy and take them away. Wendy shouts at Jepperd for help, but Gus is left speechless. He knows that Jepperd betrayed them.
"Welcome to the Preserve" Abbott tells them mockingly. They quickly learn that the Preserve is actually a place where a madman called Dr. Singh (Jeffrey Wright) conducts experiments on hybrid hoping to find the cause of the plague. He offers bounty hunters a hefty reward for whatever hybrid they bring in. They are brought into a cell room, sharing a room with another hybrid called Bobby (Rupert Grint).
They spend most of their days in cells, with a sympathetic janitor called Johnny (Colin Hanks) which brings them food every day. Gus asks Johnny why did he choose to work in such a horrible place since he does not seem like a horrible person. Johnny reveals he is Abbott's brother and that he has nowhere else to go.
One night, a guard comes and takes Bobby from the cell, bringing him to Dr. Singh. It is the last time they would ever see him.
When the same guard comes this time for Wendy, Gus desperately asks Johnny for help. Abbott asks Johnny what he is doing, and for the first time, Johnny decides to stand up for himself. He shoves his brother aside, he handcuffs him to a chair together with Gus and releases all the hybrids from their cell. They storm Dr. Singh's office just in time to save Wendy. The captive hybrids decide to set fire to the Preserve. Knowing that his brother is trapped, Johnny asks Gus for his help. Gus agrees, for Johnny's sake.
Everyone manages to get out the preserve unscathed, save for Dr. Singh who is never heard from again.
They leave in a van driven by Johnny. In the following months, Gus and Wendy learn how to drive the van, which helps them with gathering resources. The hybrids form a pack, which helps them through the cold winter. This teaches Gus that survival doesn't have to mean sacrificing others for the benefit of the self. As spring comes, however, most of them decide to part ways and go on their own journey.
Elsewhere, plagued by a guilty conscience, Jepperd spends another night drinking himself to sleep. He remembers the day in which Dr. Singh promised he would cure his wife and then, after he was unsuccessful, refused to give him her remains. The price was that he had to bring the doctor 3 hybrids. He recounts how he first hunted and brought Bobby. How hard it was to get him to the preserve since he kept trying to escape. He then recounts how the two hunters bested him in capturing Gus, but this in turn gave him an idea. He could more easily bring them to the preserve if he befriended them first. Running into Wendy was another happy coincidence. But all these sacrifices only deepened the emptiness inside him. Suddenly, a man with a knife approaches him and asks him for all his supplies. He taunts the man with the confidence of someone who has nothing to lose. The man stabs him. As he searches his pocket, an arrow hits his left shoulder. He drops the knife when another arrow hits right beside him. He runs in terror.
The loss of blood impaired Jepperd's vision but he could still discern the silhouette of a boy with deer antlers. Jeppard thanks him, but Gus coldly dismisses him and tells him he is not here for him. He looks around, quickly gathering some scraps from the outpost. He leaves some bandages, rubbing alcohol and a bottle of water beside him. Jeppard looks at him with a proud smile.
Gus brings the scarps to the abandoned vehicle they encountered earlier in the winter. He fixes the car while Wendy sits in the passenger's seat. The engine turns on, signalling the car is ready to go. He goes to the back of the car and opens the trunk, revealing several boxes of candy bars. He takes one of them and hops in the car, driving into the sunset.
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