Stop motion animation feels more important now than it has ever been. At a time when we’re all being pushed to take shortcuts and art is being devalued at an alarming rate, it brings me comfort to know that the animators at Laika spent over a decade bringing Wildwood to life. The movie is inspiring in its scale, dedication, and heart. From its opening minutes to its climax, Wildwood is a jaw dropping spectacle that kept me asking “how the hell did they manage that?”
Wildwood began as a middle grade fantasy book written by Colin Meloy (lead singer of my favorite band, The Decemberists) and illustrated by his wife, Portland artist, Carson Ellis. Laika, the stop motion animation studio also out of Portland, began adapting this book 16 years ago. The result is an incredible, Portland-centric fantasy epic that puts many live action movies to shame with its ambition and scale.
The film’s opening hit me square in the nostalgia. I was born in Portland, and seeing all my old haunts brought to life in glorious stop motion made me some kind of warm and fuzzy. Though most of the film takes place in the impassable wilderness beyond the city’s edges, it establishes Portland as a character and does the city justice in just under ten minutes. Then it’s off to the races building a fantasy world that borrows from the likes of Redwall and Narnia but is one of a kind.
The main character, Prue (voiced by Peyton Elizabeth Lee) is a classic teenager with a bit of an axe to grind with overprotective parents. She’s familiar, but her situation is unique. After her brother is kidnapped by crows, she finds herself thrust into a world her parents warned her never to enter, The Impassable Wilderness, or the woods beyond the city’s edge.
From Prue’s first steps into the forest, its made apparent that this world is whimsical, humorous, and brutal. Wildwood doesn’t pull a single punch. The violence in this movie is sudden and at times shocking. It’s all in service of a darker fairy tale that eschews the saccharine in favor of stakes that feel real every step of the way. It’s clear that no one is safe and not everyone gets a happy ending.
The animation of the world is so smooth and detailed, I often forgot I was watching stop motion animation at all. I have never seen that level of fluidity and fidelity in the medium, even with past Laika films. The characters are so highly detailed, I feel like I could look at them for hours and still notice new scars or bangles. Each person feels alive thanks to the detailed models and dynamite voice acting. While the cast is full of heavy hitters (Awkwafina, Mahershala Ali, Jake Johnson, Richard E. Grant, Angela Basset, Tom Waits, and more), it’s the two mains who steal the show.
Peyton Elizabeth Lee gives Prue an old soul vibe despite her young body. She’s sarcastic, brooding, and everything you’d expect from a granola-born Portland teenager. Jacob Tremblay’s Curtis is her perfect foil, in stuttering, nerdy, comic relief. While all the voice acting is excellent, it’s these two mains that anchor the rest of the characters and make the story feel grounded despite its fantastic setting.
Wildwood’s soundtrack is also distinctive. It mixes quiet strings and classic orchestra with a melancholy electric guitar that reminds me of The Decemberists 2009 album, The Hazards of Love. The occasional electric riff helps signify the gravity and violence of Wildwood’s world and is a powerful counterbalance to the music’s traditional fantasy elements. I’m listening to it as I write this review and it’s making me want to go watch the film all over again.
If I have one complaint about Wildwood, it is that there were a few moments where I felt the story start to drag. While I enjoyed the bureaucracy behind the animal-laden Pittock Mansion, it did end up feeling a bit ancillary to the rest of the story. I’m not sure if it was explored more in the books, but in the movie it felt like a fun aside rather than plot-critical. Still, even though it slowed the main story down, it was a joy to see a Portland landmark full of mystery brought to life in an original way.
These days, I find it difficult to sit down and watch animated content. I don’t know what it is, but a switch flipped in my brain that makes it harder for me to do. I still haven’t seen The Wild Robot despite the high praise and my initial interest (I know, probably a crime at this point). Wildwood is a reminder that animation can tell powerful stories and craft immersive worlds that live-action will never touch. What the animators and storytellers at Laika have done is truly a sight to behold. The climax of this movie was nothing short of awe-inspiring and will serve as a high watermark for all animation to come after it.
I highly recommend Wildwood and I don’t doubt that I will be watching it again soon. For those of you going with younger children, keep in mind that this is not strictly a children’s film. The violence is central, occasionally bloody, and doesn’t hold back. Adults, if you have hang-ups about animation like I do, it’s time to get over them and buy a ticket; it’s worth it.
Verdict – Wildwood is as much a technical feat of engineering as it is a jaw-dropping spectacle of a fantasy film.
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