"Wildwood"

☆☆☆½

Wildwood is a creation of astonishing beauty, a film that took five years to physically produce after a decade in development, and every bit of that time and effort is on screen. Almost.

There's absolutely no doubt that the craftsmanship, artistry and exquisite attention to detail of stop-motion animators is in every frame. Wildwood is a movie that grips the senses, and is stunning to see.

The big surprise is that it feels lacking in one fundamental area: its story feels meandering, often unfocused, and tonally off. There are scenes in this movie filled with depth and humanity, right next to scenes that don't quite stick together.

Wildwood has attracted a lot of admirers, and it's easy to see why: As a fantasy grounded in the real world, it sends a complicated young protagonist named Prue into the woods outside of Portland, Oregon, which hide an entire fantastical world.

She goes because, in defiance of her parents' strict orders, she takes her little brother Mac out of their house. Why can't he leave the house? This is the first of the problems that may not be fatal to Wildwood but took me out of the movie, left me puzzled and confused. We do find out the reason, but not until much, much later in the movie. Far too late.

The issue is less that the movie takes a long time to explain its mysteries — it takes a huge amount of time to even present them. An opening sequence involving a wealthy couple and a young boy who is revealed to be some sort of mechanical child is beautiful and haunting and well-conceived, but since none of the characters have been established, it means almost nothing. By the time we finally learn what that scene means, it seemed to me too late — if any film would benefit from an expository prologue, it's Wildwood.

Once Prue enters the forest into the magical realm where Mac is being held captive — she's accompanied by her nerdy little friend Curtis, who is the most entertaining character in the movie — Wildwood revels in its ability to present anything it can conceive.

Hundreds of stop-motion animators worked countless hours to create these astonishing wonders, enhancing them with CG animation for things like water in an exciting scene involving a river and a waterfall. There is not a moment of Wildwood that isn't a joy to behold.

It's just a shame the story feels so disjointed. The movie left me dazzled but unmoved, and a little more than curious about the fate of poor Curtis, who simply disappears after the climax.

There's so much about Wildwood to recommend it, but not quite enough to recommend it without reservations. Fantasy fans, animation enthusiasts, and readers of the novel on which it's based will no doubt be entirely pleased. For everyone else, it's a mixed bag.

Viewed November 2, 2026 — AMC Universal 16

1220