Wildwood Movie Review: Brilliant Fantasy Tale

With mysterious woods, magical beings, and unexpected dangers, Wildwood is a wonderful dark fantasy with brilliant animation.

At the beginning of Wildwood, Prue (Peyton Elizabeth Lee) is tasked with looking after her younger brother Mac (Arthur Knight), and her parents give her one rule: do not go outside. Naturally, she does exactly that and takes Mac outside for the day in Portland, where they run into Prue’s classmate, Curtis (Jacob Tremblay, of The Little Mermaid). But trouble follows where they go as a murder of crows kidnaps Mac and takes him towards the dangerous forest no outsider is meant to enter under any circumstances. Determined to save her brother at whatever cost, Prue follows them into the woods, where she will encounter talking animals, unexpected enemies, and friendly allies. 

With beautiful shots, impressive animation, and a fascinating storyline, Wildwood portrays the woods in a beautiful way, having it at the very heart of its entire narrative. It soon becomes more than just a forest and also feels like a character in its own right. The “impassable wilderness” is very well explored and designed in terms of storytelling and animation. The complex world building that expands to every element of the forest and is brought to life by the stop motion techniques that pays attention to every tree, every leaf, and every detail of this world, creating a beautifully crafted story.

The narrative is also excellent; the film immediately establishes its setting and stakes really well without ever falling into the trap of over-explaining or relying on exposition, but instead letting the film speak for itself and trusting the power of its shots and animation. Wildwood has all the elements of a good fantasy story, such as talking animals, an epic battle, and the ultimate fight between good and evil to save what matters the most, combined with a beautiful style of stop motion animation.

The soundtrack by Dario Marianelli is also wonderful and the key to creating such a fast paced and tense atmosphere throughout the movie. Each part of the score matches the story perfectly, portraying the forest in all its shapes and forms: at times beautiful and enchanting and at times terrifying and ominous, the music matches the feeling of this movie perfectly in a soundtrack that will easily become iconic thanks to its memorable and beautiful themes.

Overall, Wildwood is a beautiful and well crafted film; a wonderful stop motion animation that transports the audience into an otherworldly forest where everything becomes possible, including talking animals, sentient nature, and dangers at every corner. It’s an enthralling and well-narrated  film that elevates the fantasy genre to the level and scope it was once known for with films like The Chronicles of Narnia and Lord of the Rings, from which this movie borrows elements in a clever and successful way.

Wildwood was screened at the BFI London Film Festival on October 11, 2026.