Hundreds of Beavers – Revenge of the Beavers Tour at HOME

Hundreds of Beavers is about as unlikely a success story as the cinema has seen in years — a slapstick, black and white comedy about a drunken, 19th century, pioneer fur-trapper that’s turned into a cult phenom. The film, directed as his first feature by Mike Cheslik, and starring Ryland Tews as the bumbling Jean Kayak, a man trying to win the heart of a merchant’s daughter (Olivia Graves) while battling a boat-load of beavers, is so overloaded with influences that it seems almost impossible that it works. And yet it does, spectacularly.

Cheslik, who co-wrote the script with Tews, combines the slapstick of Buster Keaton with the relentless, anything-can-happen energy of a Looney Tunes cartoon, pinning his laughs to a level-based structure ripped straight out of a vintage Nintendo video game. It’s unsurprising to discover that the pair came up with the concept while drinking at a Milwaukee bar, as we watch Tews’ character take on crafty rabbits, dangerous wolves, and the titular beavers — each of which is represented on screen by an actor in a furry suit.

It will be fascinating to hear more about the low-budget production and unconventional release strategy from Ryland Tews at HOME’s special Revenge of the Beavers tour event

The DIY nature of the enterprise is absolutely part of the charm, and it will be fascinating to hear more about the low-budget production and unconventional release strategy from Ryland Tews at HOME’s special Revenge of the Beavers tour event. The combination of low-fi costumes and practical effects with extensive post-production (there are over 1,500 visual effects) marks the film an intriguing outlier, and perhaps an aspirational model for future independent production.

Also unusual is the strategy by which Hundreds of Beavers has been delivered to audiences since its 2022 premiere. The filmmakers have prioritised word-of-mouth buzz and the theatrical experience with a slow roll out and this on-going showcase tour featuring Tews. It’s a plan that has only increased the film’s reputation and entrenched the sense of the movie as a cult object, albeit one that only works because the product is so endearingly, side-splittingly good.

This event is part of The Cultural Welcome – a week of events designed to help students discover the creative and cultural spaces of Manchester’s Knowledge Quarter.