Powerful New Zealand crime film Savage, starring Australian actor Jake Ryan, is now streaming on Stan.
Inspired by stories from New Zealand’s boys homes and the early history of New Zealand gangs, Savage follows Danny (Jake Ryan, alongside James Matamua and Olly Presling) across three different ages during important junctures in his life that push and pull him towards and away from gang life.
Each chapter of Danny’s life is a complete short story set in a defining time for New Zealand gangs – from the abusive state-run boy’s homes of the sixties; to the emerging urban gang scene in the seventies, where disenfranchised teenagers created their own families on the streets; to the eighties, when gangs became more structured, criminal, and violent.
Together the three chapters combine to create a deeper look at a boy who grows up to become the brutal enforcer of a gang; to understand how he got there.
Savage explores Danny’s search for belonging and connection as he is torn between his real family and his gang family – and must choose where he belongs.
Written and directed by Sam Kelly and starring Jake Ryan (Wolf Creek, Home and Away), Savage also stars John Tui (Fast & Furious: Hobbs & Shaw), AACTA Award-winner Chelsie Preston Crayford (The Code), Seth Flynn (Fresh Eggs) and newcomers James Matamua and Olly Presling.
