Rating 6/10
If only the stories that Laika gave us were as imaginative as their artwork. It pains me to say that because I love what the studio represents. In an industry dominated by computer graphics, its commitment to handcrafted stop-motion deserves praise.
Wildwood, Laika’s first feature since 2019’s disappointing Missing Link, is perhaps its greatest technical achievement. Based on Colin Meloy’s novel and directed by Travis Knight, it’s a breathtaking spectacle. Unfortunately, admiring the artistry and enjoying the story are two very different things.
Early on, a murder of crows swoops down on a playground and snatches baby Mac McKeel (Arthur Knight). It’s a Hitchcockian sequence, and the first of many visual marvels. Equally astonishing are the uniformed coyotes marching in eerie formation and Prue (Peyton Elizabeth Lee) soaring above the forest on the back of the General (Angela Bassett), a giant golden eagle with its enormous wings unfolding in flight.
Ironically, Laika may have become too good at what it does. Part of my affection for traditional puppets is their herky-jerky charm. There’s something wonderfully tactile about the craftsmanship that still looks handmade. I have such nostalgia for those Rankin/Bass TV specials like Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Wildwood moves with flawless fluidity. And, as it turns out, the filmmakers use extensive CGI. The crows in the kidnapping sequence are digitally animated, for example. Visual effects supplement the handcrafted puppets and sets throughout. The artistry is impressive, but I miss the imperfections.
The story begins promisingly. Headstrong Prue McKeel (Peyton Elizabeth Lee) defies her parents by taking baby brother Mac outside. When crows carry him off, Prue pursues them into the Impassable Wilderness, a magical forest ordinary people allegedly cannot enter.
The idea of a hidden civilization of talking animals, warring armies, and otherworldly creatures is rather appealing. What’s bewildering is where it’s located: Portland. The kingdom occupies a fantastical version of the city’s real Forest Park. A supernatural barrier keeps outsiders away, while Prue can cross for reasons explained later. Fair enough. I’ll accept any wild conceit, but it’s an awfully convenient explanation for an entire civilization going unnoticed in a major American city.
Oh, and don’t let the talking animals fool you. This is Laika’s first PG-13 feature, with bloody fantasy violence and heavy themes that involve death and suicide. This is not a cuddly children’s adventure.
The characters, alas, are far less exciting than the scenery. Prue is yet another tough, independent young heroine whose strength comes with a heaping helping of sarcasm and stubbornness. I will champion a formidable female protagonist, but this one needs a personality beyond the hackneyed girl-power formula. Prue’s classmate Curtis Mehlberg (Jacob Tremblay) is a timid nerd with a crush on her that comes across as another familiar creation. The take-charge girl/bumbling boy dynamic was handled with more nuance in The Lego Movie. There, Wyldstyle’s confidence masks insecurity, while Emmet’s apparent incompetence conceals unexpected strengths. Both grow beyond their narrowly assigned roles. Prue and Curtis remain one-dimensional. Although Curtis proves the more interesting of the two.
Strangely, the most compelling character may be Alexandra (Carey Mulligan), the film’s designated villain. Devastated by the death of her son Alexei, she turns to forbidden magic, with tragic consequences. She’s prepared to sacrifice an innocent child to bring Alexei back. Such actions are indefensible, but Alexandra’s grief gives the character a deeper complexity the heroes lack. Meanwhile, Prue’s supposedly sympathetic parents (Jake Johnson and Maya Erskine) freely accept a morally questionable deal. Yet the screenplay never holds them accountable. There’s a fascinating lesson about the terrible price of making bargains. It’s a shame that screenwriter Chris Butler isn’t interested in exploring this moral dilemma.
At 132 minutes, this is the longest stop-motion animated feature ever made. What begins as a simple rescue mission balloons into a fantasy epic that predictably culminates in the sort of massive battle we’ve seen in everything from The Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia to Avengers: Endgame. Its roughly 3,000 combatants represent an astonishing combination of stop-motion and CGI. Yet for all its technical brilliance, the battle feels strangely hollow.
I’m grateful Laika exists and hope it keeps making these elaborate productions. Artists deserve credit for spending years building miniature worlds and moving puppets one frame at a time. I only wish the depth of the storytelling matched that commitment. Wildwood is an extraordinary technical achievement within a heartbreakingly ordinary movie.
10-22-26