Get Duked! – Boyz in the Wood (2019)

Directed by: Ninian Doff | 87 minutes | action, comedy | Actors: Lewis Gribben, Rian Gordon, Viraj Juneja, Jonathan Aris, Samuel Bottomley, James Cosmo, Eddie Izzard, Kate Dickie, Kevin Guthrie, Brian Pettifer, Georgie Glen, Kathryn Howden, Alice Lowe

They are rascals, but nice rascals. The trio of Duncan, Dean and DJ Beatroot have misbehaved at school, an offense for which the Scottish school system has a special re-education penalty. The trio is sent on a trek through the Scottish Highlands, a mission that could earn them the Duke of Edinburgh Award. They are joined by Ian, a good boy who believes that completing the task can help him in his later life. But what the boys don’t know is that a remarkable number of hikers have disappeared in the Highlands lately.

In the quirky comedy ‘Get Duked!’ we follow the adventures of our brave quartet. Along the way, the boys encounter militant mountain dwellers, psychedelic rabbit droppings, useless maps, super-sharp eating forks, some kind of bomb, and much more wretchedness. Fortunately, help seems to be on the way when the police force of a nearby village, after much thought, shifts its priorities. They abandon the hunt for a serial bread thief and go in search of the lost boys.

For those who didn’t understand it yet: ‘Get Duked!’ is no ordinary comedy. The story is completely silly, and the main characters are the silly kind we know from the related ‘The Young Offenders’ and the ‘Derry Girls’ series. The score is ‘Get Duked!’ a bit lower on the humor scale. There are a bit too many jokes about the name DJ Beatroot, nor do we see the microscopic sparks of genius with which the Derry Girls sometimes surprise us and provide a nice contrast.

The storylines, on the other hand, are quite original, with the bonus that those lines eventually come together nicely. Also amusing is the presence of the police force, which evokes memories of the not-so-capable village policemen from ‘Hot Fuzz’. Another plus are the visuals, with atmospheric shots of the Highlands and the psychedelic images when the boys have once again eaten rabbit droppings.

With ‘Get Duked!’ director Ninian Doff has delivered a nice punky feature debut. Sometimes bland and predictable, but more often hilarious, original and authentic. With a bunch of amiable rascals as the beating heart and an untold plot as the greatest weapon. And with a title that far exceeds the original title – the all-too-easy ‘Boyz in the Wood’.