''The Wild Man of the Navidad'' is a 2008

Bigfoot Bigfoot, also commonly referred to as Sasquatch, is a purported ape-like creature said to inhabit the forest of North America. Many dubious articles have been offered in attempts to prove the existence of Bigfoot, including anecdotal claims o ...

horror film Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes. Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...

written and directed by

Duane Graves Duane may refer to: * Duane (given name) * Duane (surname) * Duane, New York, a US town * the title character of ''Duane Hopwood'', a 2005 film featured in the Sundance Film Festival * Duane Adelier, a main character of ''Unsounded'', a 2012 fanta ...

and Justin Meeks. It was picked up by

IFC Films IFC Films is an American film production and distribution company based in New York. It is an offshoot of IFC owned by AMC Networks. It distributes mainly independent films under its own name, select foreign films and documentaries under its S ...

shortly after its world premiere at the 2008

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by TriBeCa Productions, Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive progra ...

, and re-released in 2021 by

MPI Media Group MPI Media Group is an American producer, distributor and licensor of theatrical film and home entertainment. MPI's subsidiaries include MPI Pictures, MPI Home Video, Gorgon Video, and the horror film distributor Dark Sky Films. The company is lo ...

Dread Central Dread Central is an American website founded in 2006 that is dedicated to horror news, interviews, and reviews. It covers horror films, comics, novels, and toys. Dread Central has won the Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award for Best Website f ...

named it one of the "Top 10

Movies of the 21st Century."

Plot

This film is allegedly based on the real-life journals of Dale S. Rogers, a man who, in the 1970s, lived along the banks of the

Navidad River The Navidad River is a -long coastal river in the U.S. state of Texas that runs roughly parallel to its sister river, the Lavaca River. It is not spring fed, and all of its volume is runoff, which eventually provides for much of the water in Lake ...

Sublime, Texas Sublime is an unincorporated community in Lavaca County, Texas, United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It c ...

- the same area where the original legend of the Wild Man of the Navidad surfaced in the late 1800s. The film follows Dale, his wheelchair-using wife Jean, and her oft-shirtless, lazy-eyed caretaker Mario. Though their ranch sits on vast acres prime for paying hunters, Dale has resisted opening up the land because of the strange,

-like creatures supposedly inhabiting it, but after the prodding of some of the rifle-loving townsfolk and the loss of his welding job, Dale gives in and opens the gate to his compound. Then, the hunters become the hunted.

Cast

Production

The film is a throwback to drive-in

Sasquatch Bigfoot, also commonly referred to as Sasquatch, is a purported ape-like creature said to inhabit the forest of North America. Many dubious articles have been offered in attempts to prove the existence of Bigfoot, including Anecdotal evidence, ...

films of the 1970s like ''

The Legend of Boggy Creek ''The Legend of Boggy Creek'' is a 1972 American docudrama horror film about the "Fouke Monster", a Bigfoot-type creature that reportedly has been seen in and around Fouke, Arkansas since the 1940s. The film mixes staged interviews with some lo ...

'', and is known for its recreation of their specific vintage style, pacing and feel—from the real-life characters down to the period production design and music. The film was co-produced by

Kim Henkel Kim David Henkel (born January 19, 1946) is an American screenwriter, director, producer, and actor. He is best known as the co-writer of Tobe Hooper's horror film ''The Texas Chain Saw Massacre''. Early life Henkel was born in Virginia and g ...

, co-writer of the original ''

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre ''The Texas Chain Saw Massacre'' is a 1974 American horror film produced and directed by Tobe Hooper from a story and screenplay by Hooper and Kim Henkel. It stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow and Gunnar Hansen, w ...

'' with

Tobe Hooper Willard Tobe Hooper (; January 25, 1943 – August 26, 2017) was an American director, screenwriter, and producer best known for his work in the horror film, horror genre. The British Film Institute cited Hooper as one of the most influenti ...

in 1974 and was written, directed and edited by two of Henkel's screenwriting/production students, Justin Meeks and

Reception

Ain't It Cool News Ain't It Cool News (AICN) is an entertainment news website founded by Harry Knowles and run by his sister Dannie Knowles since September 2017, dedicated to news, rumors, and reviews of upcoming and current films, television, and comic book proje ...

described it as "about as perfect a Bigfoot film I've seen so far." Scott Foy of

describes the film as "a creepy, southern-fried creature feature."

' Alison Willmore states that it is "a welcome palate cleanser" for the horror genre. Scott Weinberg of Cinematical calls it "enthusiastically splattery...a rather spirited little terror tale...that actually feels like it has been hidden in a vault." ''

Daily Variety ''Variety'' is an American media company owned by Penske Media Corporation. The company was founded by Sime Silverman in New York City in 1905 as a weekly newspaper reporting on theater and vaudeville. In 1933 it added ''Daily Variety'', based ...

'' critic John Anderson writes "cult status is already achieved...''Wild Man'' mixes homage with horror for a pretty potent dose of movie moonshine." Merle Bertrand of

Film Threat ''Film Threat'' is an online film review publication, and earlier, a national magazine that focused primarily on independent film, although it also reviewed videos and DVDs of mainstream films, as well as Hollywood movies in theaters. It first ...

relates it as "wonderfully retro...it's time to go back to the drive-in."

References

External links

* * *
The legend of the Wild Man in Texas

at

Time Out New York ''Time Out'' is a global magazine published by Time Out Group. ''Time Out'' started as a London-only publication in 1968 and has expanded its editorial recommendations to 328 cities in 58 countries worldwide. In 2012, the London edition becam ...

'The Wild Man of the Navidad' DVD Cover Art and Specs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wild Man Of The Navidad 2008 films 2008 horror films American independent films American slasher films Bigfoot films American exploitation films American folklore films and television series American monster movies Films set in Texas Films shot in Texas 2000s English-language films 2000s American films