LAIKA’s newly released movie Wildwood reminds audiences that passion and creativity is more of a reward than profits. In a world where money seems to take all precedent, the projected net financial loss of $60 million for Wildwood would indicate the movie’s failure and inability to resonate with its audience.
However, it has a 98% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, 8.6 out of 10 on IMDb, and an average of 4.4 stars on Letterboxd. This makes it the highest rated stop motion film by LAIKA. Even more than the well known film Coraline with a 91% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, 7.8 out of 10 on IMDb, and 4.2 stars out of 5 on Letterboxd.
The film starts off with the protagonist, Prue, being told by her parents to keep her brother inside while she babysits, much to her dismay. Ignoring her parents warnings, she takes her brother on a bike trip around Portland, meeting her classmate, Curtis, along the way at the coffee shop. She eventually lets her brother, Mac, play in a secluded playground, taking the time to chat with Curtis.
Suddenly, a group of crows arrive and kidnap her baby brother. Prue and Curtis travel into the mysterious forest otherwise known as the Impassable Wildness in attempts to bring back Mac. Unfortunately, she and Curtis get separated after a struggle with a talking pack of wolves. Thus, leading them to meet different factions in the woods. Together they uncover the hidden plot of Mac’s kidnapping and connection to the woods.
This film takes on the challenge of demonstrating the different motivations of each faction including their connections and rivalries with one another. It does not shy away from exploring the darker themes of war and loss unlike many child protagonist films do. Instead, Wildwood takes on the approach like many of the Grim Fairytales. The narrative uses themes of violence to highlight lessons like anti-war messaging, accepting loss, and embracing life. All lessons to which a child growing up can appreciate.
Many family films sanitize the harder aspects of life, assuming that their children will not be able to handle such narratives. Such coddling can be counterproductive for the child’s understanding and coping mechanisms. It leaves them without an example to learn from and have a precedent to hold these harder conversations with their family.
This is why Wildwood has been so notable with its release. The film takes on chances and strays away from the usual family film narratives. It allows children to conceptualize multiple angles at once and expand their understanding of how their own reality is built through different groups and their goals.
Wildwood was directed by Travis Knight who took inspiration from the novel series Wildwood written by Colin Meloy and it took 16 years to finalize. It was no small project taking over 132 practical sets, 231 handmade puppets, and 231 weeks of production.
The film makes history as the longest stop-motion animated movie ever made at 132 minutes. It is certainly no small feat and should be celebrated as a mark for human innovation and progress. As a society we must continue to value creative passions and keep profitability away from the notion of success.