IF you’re looking for something really different in family drama, then “Life Is Wild,” an American family drama set in South Africa, may be your ticket out.
While the setup may seem familiar – blended family trying to make it – the setting is anything but. It’s actually filmed in the Glen Afric wildlife reserve, which means the screen is filled with gorgeous views, spectacular wild animals and some very good, sometimes gorgeous wildlife and wild kingdom cinematography.
The series centers around Katie Clarke (Leah Pipes) and her newly-minted family – which her dad Danny (D.W. Moffet), a veterinarian, and step-mother Jo, (Stephanie Niznick), a high-powered lawyer – have just uprooted from their cushy NYC apartment and the comfort of their schools.
The destination? The broken-down Blue Antelope Lodge of Katie’s maternal grandfather, Art (David Butler), on a game preserve in South Africa. The length of the stay? One year. The objective? Repair the lodge, repair the family and repair the local animals that need medical care.
Katie’s family includes her 11-year-old brother Chase (K’Sun Ray); her new, rebellious step-brother, Jesse (Andrew St. John); and 7-year old step-sister, Mia (Mary Matilyn Mouser). Katie’s mother, we learn, died three years earlier and Jesse’s father, Jo’s ex, is in jail.
The move 10,000 miles away to a South African game preserve was decided upon because Jesse, resentful of the marriage, began getting into too much trouble in New York and because the new “blended” family wasn’t blending very well.
As the story unfolds, we learn what caused the bitter family breakup and why Danny feels that the rift that was shouldn’t disrupt the chance of a new life that could be.
When they arrive at the lodge, Gramps is dead-drunk, the place is in total disrepair and the only action seems to be running away from a wounded female lion.
However, things begin to pick up when the teens meet the locals – Oliver (Calvin Goldspink), Tumelo (Atandwa Kani), Emily (Tiffany Mulheron) and Mblai (Precious Kofi).
While the village is primitive, there is a very upscale lodge nearby that gives tourists a taste of the wild with a big dose of luxury.
Danny has signed on as the local veterinarian, which means he fixes a lot of goats, not to mention the aforementioned wounded lioness.
Yes, there’s a heavy hand in the schmaltz department, what with the dead mother and the wounded beasts and all (Hey! It’s Africa after all!) but it’s not so heavy that it’s annoyingly cloying. At least it worked for me.
In fact I found myself misting up a bit what with the dead mother and the wounded beasts and all. Maybe it’s hormonal.
“Life Is Wild”
Tomorrow at 8 p.m. on Ch. 11