In many ways, “Wildwood” is monumental; it is a stop-motion-animated “Lord of the Rings.” It has tens of thousands of individually animated parts and its hundreds of sets are larger than life. Every scene evokes the same emotion: “WOW.” Therein lies the film’s problem. “Wildwood” is monolithic but struggles to bear its own weight.
For the past 20 years, Laika Studios has produced a number of dazzling, handmade stop-motion-animated films. Each movie is more expensive and expansive than the last. Each frame is dripping with human creativity. The catch? Laika films have never been profitable. Laika CEO Travis Knight is the son of former Nike CEO Phil Knight, who bankrolls the entire company. Nepotism is the unfortunate origin of all these original animated projects. Yet Laika remains one of the few film production companies adamant about its aversion to generative AI usage. In an entertainment industry driven by advertisement and revenue, sometimes the only impactful resistance can come from people in places of privilege.
The film “Wildwood” follows a teenage Portlander, Prue, who embarks on a quest into the “Impassable Wilderness” to retrieve her baby brother, who was abducted by a murder of crows. Along the way, she discovers a new world filled with talking animals, political corruption and a dark plot that threatens the very existence of the Impassible Wilderness. “Wildwood” at its heart is a love letter to imagination, the Pacific Northwest and to the production of art itself.
The film fully embodies its scale. Laika produced hundreds of thousands of faceplates for more than 200 puppets, all of which are hand-animated. At many points throughout, I had to remind myself that everything seen was created one frame at a time. This is difficult to conceptualize while watching the 11-minute, Game of Thrones-style battle sequence at the climax of the film. The story is anchored by a number of excellent voice performances, but literally looming over every other character is Carey Mulligan’s Dowager Governess Alexandra — the film’s antagonist. Mulligan commands the movie with her icy yet dominating stoicism.
Joining Mulligan are Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Jacob Tremblay, Richard E. Grant, Mahershala Ali, Awkwafina, Jake Johnson, Charlie Day and Angela Bassett, who are all responsible for building out the world of “Wildwood” as much as it deserves.
A ship needs more than an anchor, however. The scope of “Wildwood” is difficult to comprehend for all of these reasons, but this development comes at the cost of the story. The film is overwhelmed by how large it is. “Wildwood” is based on a massive young adult novel of the same name by Decemberists lead singer Colin Meloy, clocking in at over 100,000 words. Due to how long production on such a film takes, a sequel filling out the rest of the book would not be possible.
“Wildwood” is the longest stop-motion animated film to date but still feels rushed. We bounce from scene to scene without enough time to emotionally invest in Richard E. Grant’s Owl Rex or Tom Waits as a terrifying human-sized rat.
This film’s existence itself is a lifetime achievement for everyone involved. Its scale is unheard of and with every moment you can feel its makers’ passion for Oregon and the creation of art there. In addition to writing the source material, legendary Portland band The Decemberists contributed to the soundtrack. You can find Portland easter eggs in many of the scenes. It is a celebration of human creativity in animated form. It’s essential to the current era.
Grade: B-