Release Date: October 23rd, 2026
Format: DCP (Cinemark at The Pike Outlets in Long Beach, CA)
Written by: Chris Butler
Directed by: Travis Knight
4 Stars
I imagine much of what has been written about Wildwood, the latest stop-motion feature film from the Oregon-based boutique studio, Laika, is that seeing it in theaters is an act of importance, maybe even protest. In the age of encroaching artificial intelligence and giant corporate mergers, here’s a little studio making animated films the right way (nevermind that Laika was founded by Travis Knight, the son of Phil Knight, Nike founder and a billionaire thirty times over).
My problem with the idea of seeing a film symbolically or in protest is that it presupposes that the film isn’t that good. Wildwood’s underperformance at the box office (so far) might be attributable to this misjudgment. Okay, maybe the film was simply mismarketed, but it’s also possible that the larger movie-going public is perceiving the act of going to the theater to watch Wildwood as akin to taking their medicine. If a Minions movie is birthday cake, then Wildwood is a bran muffin, seems to be the sentiment.
That’s too bad. Wilwood is hardly a sacrifice of your time and attention. It is a wonderful film, full of visual magic and thrilling action. This is not a tedious artistic exercise, but rather a big exciting blockbuster, if you can find it in your heart to give it a chance.
The story’s protagonist, Prue (Peyton Elizabeth Lee), is a 13-year-old girl living in suburban Portland with her loving parents and 1-year-old brother, Mac. Prue is a sure-headed pragmatist with little interest in exploring the deep forests that surround her modest, idyllic neighborhood, until one day a murder of crows swoop down and carry little Mac off into the wilderness. With the help of nerdy classmate Curtis (Jacob Tremblay), Prue ventures into the forest to save her infant brother.
Her pragmatism is tested when she encounters a magical and grieving dowager governess (Carey Mulligan) hellbent on conquering the surrounding wilderness. With her is an army of loyal coyote soldiers and those malicious crows, and against her is a resistance force comprised of human bandits, beautiful wild birds, and delightful animal farmers of all shapes and sizes. At times cute, at other times genuinely menacing, the character designs from the artists at Laika are astounding.
The whole picture is astounding, frankly. What incredible action sequences! And I don’t mean incredible for a stop-motion film, where you must appreciate the tedium that must have gone into making these scenes come to life. I mean Wildwood has incredible action sequences by any criteria.
This is no artistic fiddle faddle, no, Wildwood is a magnum opus. Now if only people will go watch it.
