Hello Destroyer
Director: Kevin Funk
By Alex Watson
A shattering look at the dashed dreams of Youth, Kevin Funk's Hello Destroyer is unlike any hockey film you will ever see. Making the most of the little dialogue, Funk excellently creates a haunting silence and lets the actions of young actor Jared Abrahamson tell the tale. Showing the effects of what happens when coaches try turning their players into warriors- this downfall is one that is truly painful to watch.
Tyson Burr (Jared Abrahamson) is a rookie playing for a junior hockey team in Prince George, British Columbia. From the get go he is trained by his coach that this game is like a battlefield. One night he obeys his coaches request to play aggressively and seriously hurts an opposing player. When word gets out about the severity of the player's injury, Tyson is quickly thrown on the scrap heap. Facing serious consequences from his actions- the young man must rebuild a new existence.
Shot in a low and murky light, Hello Destroyer is far from being an upbeat and heartwarming story of redemption. In the opening scene, we see Tyson locked in combat with another player. Shot close up, you can feel each blow hit and his status as a wild creature on the ice becomes apparent. The movie's opening quarter is dedicated to how the players are trained in almost military style aggression. These boys are drilled hard about how hockey is a game where only the strong survive. The new rookies are hazed roughly by their teammates by being held down and having their heads shaved. Urged on by his coaches and praised for his physical toughness, things look promising. Tyson is an introverted member of the team and although he fits in nicely, looks all at sea when the boys swap manly stories. When he illegally boards the opposing player, the horror that washes over his face is unforgettable. Tyson has adhered to the violence he was commended for, but this is also what makes his world come crashing down.
The silence that surrounds this picture is the real element that sticks in our minds. After the incident, both his host Wendy (Sara Canning) and the team quickly gets rid of Tyson under the guise of it being for his protection. Forced to sign a statement taking full blame, the young man can only silently look on. Locals who once cheered him now pick fights with him in diners. Quickly he is thrust into a world of silent contemplation where people are happy for him to rot away taking the blame but are unwilling to provide comfort. Funk makes excellent use of the long quiet stretches, here we can feel Tyson's desperation build in his numerous unanswered calls to coach. Building to almost stifling levels, the lack of words are a far more powerful blow than Tyson's hit. Forced to go back to his old job at the slaughterhouse- one scene sums up his situation perfectly. We see a cow trapped in a grate and put to death, Tyson is a defenseless animal in this world and soon he will be lead to the slaughter.
Now treated almost like an endangered species, the lack of support that meets Tyson is devastating. Even his father Ron (Paul McGillon) holds his son at arm's length. Soon he gets him started on destroying his Grandpa's old house, People see little use in this man other than him using his fists. The long awkward exchanges between Tyson and others are what cause the biggest concern. When he finally finds a sympathetic co-worker, he finds himself having a meltdown and his buddy can only say "It's going to be alright!" Funk gives us a movie where people don't look at the big problem on display. Hello Destroyer is a devastating picture of the effects of raising our talents around institutional violence. Tyson did everything he was asked to do, but the same people who admired him are the ones who pushed him away. He also wants to address the loneliness and isolation that comes with taking the rap. Tyson is a young man still struggling to accept his situation, but all around him fail to address his actions.
Jared Abrahamson emerges as a great talent and his turn as Tyson is one you are not likely to forget. A performance that is more physical than spoken, Abrahamson speaks loudest with his actions during the movie's numerous quiet times. Through his performance, he channels the young man's disillusion with the world and his growing anxiety and despair. Tyson is a young man who is paying an unfair price and through Abrahamson, each moment of this feels heart-wrenching.
Hello Destroyer is one of the strongest offering Canadian cinema has to throw at us in 2017. An unconventional sporting tale, this picture will leave you fearing silence as you exit.
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