A girl and her estranged father embark on a perilous mission to find a mythological beast known as the Canterbury Panther. A film by Ant Timpson, starring Elijah Wood, Michael Smiley, Vanessa Stacey, Theo Shakes, Nikki Si’ulepa, Millen Baird, Morgana O’Reilly, and Nell Fisher.

In New Zealand, 11-year-old Mildred (Nell Fisher) lives with her single mother Zo (Morgana O’Reilly). One evening, Mildred is trying to catch her cat Jonesy using an intricate homemade trap. She watches through her binoculars, preparing to pull the rope to trigger the trap, when suddenly a small explosion occurs, and all the lights go out. The abrupt power outage startles Mildred, causing her to pull the rope too early, and Jonesy runs away.

At the hospital, the doctor (Millen Baird) explains to Mildred that the toaster’s button is faulty. When her mother pressed it, she received a shock that caused her to fly backward, hitting her head on the bench and falling into a coma. The doctor reassures Mildred that her mother will be okay, but notes that she has a brain bleed, so she must remain in the hospital for at least a week until she stabilizes. Mildred reveals that she and her mother had planned to go camping tomorrow, as her mother had promised.

After being notified of the unfortunate incident, Mildred’s estranged father Strawn Wise (Elijah Wood), an American illusionist, flew halfway across the world to look after her. Strawn tries to impress Mildred with his magic tricks but soon realizes that she is much smarter than most kids her age and is not easily fooled by his performances.

In Mildred’s room, Strawn notices a newspaper clipping on the wall about a $50,000 cash reward for actual video proof of the elusive Black Canterbury Panther’s existence in the High Country of New Zealand’s South Island. Mildred tells Strawn that her mother was supposed to take her camping to search for it. Sensing her disappointment, Strawn offers to take her instead.

Directed by New Zealand filmmaker Ant Timpson and written by Toby Harvard, BOOKWORM is a comedic drama that follows a smart New Zealand girl and her estranged American father as they embark on a quest to find proof of the elusive Black Canterbury Panther and win $50,000 to help the girl’s mother, who has fallen into a coma.

Elijah Wood and Nell Fisher deliver solid performances as the father-daughter duo, with Fisher standing out in particular despite her character sometimes coming across as a bit too intelligent and occasionally inconsiderate or annoying.

While the premise suggests a fanciful fable, with a mysterious creature that has eluded capture for over a decade, the film ultimately plays out more as a road trip movie about the reconciliation of the two main characters. Their quest to find the elusive panther, which is billed as the film’s climactic event, is resolved relatively quickly, as Mildred manages to capture footage of the creature with her camcorder within the first 40 minutes.

From there, the film takes some unexpected turns, as Strawn and Mildred encounter a pair of elderly hikers Angelina (Vanessa Stacey) and Arnold (Michael Smiley), who turn out to be thieves and steal their belongings including Strawn’s phone and Mildred’s camcorder.

The film then spends a significant amount of time exploring the backstories of the two main characters and their attempts to retrieve the stolen camcorder, only to find that the crucial footage has been recorded over and the battery eventually dies.

Despite the smart and prepared nature of Mildred’s character, it’s puzzling that she doesn’t have a backup battery for her camcorder, especially given the importance of capturing the panther on film. Although even if she has an extra battery, there is no guarantee that they would encounter the Canterbury Panther again. (But they did, not once but twice!)

Ultimately, BOOKWORM is a family-friendly film that showcases the beautiful landscape of New Zealand, but it never quite reaches the full potential of its premise, feeling more like a meandering road trip story than a cohesive fable about the elusive Black Canterbury Panther.

BOOKWORM premiered at Fantasia International Film Festival on 18 July 2024. The film was theatrically released in New Zealand on 8 August.