‘Wendell & Wild Movie Review: Stop Motion Still Alive And Kicking
There's always that movie that totally shakes you out of your childhood, a movie so dark that you think, "How's that for kids?" In 2009, stop-motion director Henry Selick managed to shock an entire generation with his horror film Coraline, so if he ever decides to turn his attention to an older film, you can only imagine his horror. . . public
Well, imagine no more, because on October 28, Selick's latest film, Wendell & Wilde, hit Netflix. I have to say, for a guy whose PG movie once scared me into using a nightlight, his latest movie, PG-13, didn't live up to it. Unlike Coraline, Wendell and Wilde is a dark comedy with too much wit and subtlety to make sense of the word.
Despite the genre differences, the film itself had the potential to be fantastic and could have been better than it actually was. The characters have great dynamics, the jokes are hilarious, the character designs are flawless, and the villains are fun to hate.
With so many different characters, there were definitely subplots and each had a certain charm. The Demon Brothers' magic hair cream, Kat's journey from hell to virginity, Claxcorp's involvement in the town's economic collapse, and Sister Haley's involvement with the supernatural were good stories.
However, if these stories were a series instead of a movie, it would work more smoothly. This will keep the story moving at a better pace and prevent characters from repeating the same thing to different people. Seriously, the genie brothers tell all the other kids about their dream carnival, and the principal's entire identity revolves around school finances.
The story follows Kat, an orphaned scandalmonger who is sent to a religious boarding school as part of an aid program. The rebellious teenager does not take this change well, especially since the school is located in his old town, where his parents died.
When he arrives, two devilish brothers, Wendell and Wilde, are applying their father's conditioner. They have visions of a new Hell Girl (aka Kat) and convince her to summon them in exchange for her dead parents.
Meanwhile, Kat tries to gather what she needs for the challenge, avoiding the suspicions of the Healy sisters, both of whom have dark secrets, and the strange school caretaker Manberg.
In general, the film was very ambitious. Try to do too much with limited time and the result looks lazy and frustrating. I mean, an angry monster the size of King Kong seems ready to destroy a city, only to leave because of paternal guilt to appease his anger. It's like they decided that having an actor antagonist wasn't enough.
This movie could have been better. There were some very well done parts. If the writers could apply the "show don't tell" rule, they would at least eliminate the repetitive dialogue.
Overall, if you go into this movie expecting a good scare, prepare to be disappointed. But if you're looking for a relaxing movie with teenage angst and rebellion, trance imagery, goofy walking lekkies and a fight scene involving the entire cast, this might be the movie for you.
