‘Wildwood’ is Impeccably Impossible
If I stood over the filmmaker’s shoulders while they made it, I still wouldn’t believe it really happened. Travis Knight’s Wildwood is a new major touchstone of what animation is capable of, as long as the time and effort are put into making it that way.
The advantages of animation are to stretch the physical limits of what can be presented on film. Computer and hand-drawn animation can make the impossible out of thin air, but stop-motion animation doesn’t have that same advantage. If the film wasn’t good, it would still be an incredible achievement of completion. The fact that the film is visceral, beautiful, and coherent makes the film all the more incredible to behold.
[Warning: possible spoilers from Wildwood are below!]
The artistry and story of Wildwood
In our modern filmmaking landscape, legitimate filmmakers utilizing AI as a filmmaking tool have become all too common. Whether intentionally or not, this film directly flies in the face of the notion of a tool making it easier to make films. Not only does the physical action of crafting a stop-motion film take an exhausting amount of time, but the pure craftsmanship, attention to detail, and necessary human interaction put a clear middle finger to the proliferation of AI into the industry.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, if the film had an awesome story but was lacking visually, you could give it a pass just due to the way it was made. But frankly, for long stretches, I forgot the film wasn’t computer animated. The cinematography is perfect; the coloring and life to every tree, feather, and piece of clothing move realistically, and the size and scope don’t match anything previously attempted, much less conceived and executed.
The time, patience, artistic wizardry, and story all come together in an unprecedented way for Wildwood. Based on the fantasy novel, the film follows Prue McKeel (voiced by Peyton Elizabeth Lee), a slightly rebellious teenager tasked with watching her infant brother Mac while her parents are away. Going against the rules against bringing him outdoors, Prue takes Mac to play at a park, leading to Mac being abducted by a murder of crows. Prue and her classmate Curtis (Jacob Tremblay) follow the group into a magical forest to rescue Mac.
In the forest, Curtis is met and captured by Alexandra (Carey Mulligan), the dowager governess who rules a group of coyotes, controlling the wood with dark magic. Prue learns of Alexandra’s tormented past and her abduction of Mac. Prue must join forces with the forest animals, the group of bandits and the Bandit King (Mahershala Ali), and the forest mystics to bring her brother back and restore order in the wood.
The deeper side of this Laika animated film
This film does not live on craft alone, delving into many deep thematic elements. Prue is clearly on a hero’s journey, but the film makes it clear this struggle is not just about her and Mac. Curtis has his own hero’s journey to uncover, and his story is given ample time to blossom. So many films are about grief and how people process it, but this film takes a slightly different approach. Instead of focusing on healing and overcoming the demons, it shows characters who will never learn to move on and how it will destroy them and others. The dangers of grief are rarely personified as they are here.
It feels silly to go through all that work to set up the story for the first 100 minutes, but the film is also building to this wholly unexpected conclusion for the type of film it is. Instead of some end to a grand conflict using some gift from the gods, there is a full-blown massive battle sequence, complete with death and destruction. Knives in the eye, broken bones, blood, decapitations, and so on. This is not a battle of punches and kicks. There are real fights with real death and consequences. It might be animated, but I wouldn’t say it’s for kids.
Each voice actor does exceptional work on their own, and as part of the ensemble. Mulligan gets the most dramatic role, and delivers at every opportunity. Lee and Tremblay get to cultivate a character of their own and equally deliver. Ali also does fine work, not content with just delivering his classic baritone. Other famous voices like Angela Bassett, Awkwafina, Jake Johnson, Maya Erskine, Tom Waits, Richard E. Grant, Jermaine Clement, Amanda Stenberg, and Charlie Day all add their talents to the film’s supporting cast.
Wildwood is beautiful to look at, touching to take in, and looks like it took a million years to make. I don’t know how they made it, but I’m sure glad they did.
Wildwood is currently in theaters! Are you planning on checking this film out? Are you excited for another claymation film? Share your thoughts on social media and tag @bsb.insider to keep the conversation going!
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