No matter how you’re feeling right now, any day is a good day if it contains the release of a new Wildwood trailer. The world has been starving for a new fantasy epic from Laika and we’re about to get it…the trailer comes with a definitive release date.
One fateful day Prue McKeel took her baby brother to an abandoned playground and let him mess around on the rusty structure…which was dangerous in itself, but THEN a massive flock of crows flew in from out of nowhere, lifted him up and carried him to an even more dangerous place called the Impassable Wilderness. The only other one who knows what just happened is her classmate Curtis, so together they set off on a journey into the enchanted land to get the kid back.
It is there they meet talking dogs, an army of rats, and a witch Prue suspects was behind the abduction. “As the pair is drawn into a conflict threatening the balance of the forest itself, Prue must discover strength and belief she never knew she possessed,” says Laika. “If she hopes to save her brother and protect Wildwood’s fragile future, she will have to risk everything.”
Laika has always been a Portland operation, but this is the first movie where they get to show off that local knowledge — and being a native I get to examine their work for accuracy. That one shot of a mansion isn’t from the fantasy realm, it’s Pittock Mansion on the West Hills. The area she lives in is unmistakably the St. Johns neighborhood; the big blue bridge is a dead giveaway. Right after this she is shown drinking from the Benson Bubblers in the downtown area, and if we’re assuming it’s the same day, she could not possibly have biked there from St. Johns (I’m going to assume she hitched a ride on a bus for part of the trip, sticking her bike on the front rack).
Wildwood stars Peyton Elizabeth Lee as Prue, Jacob Tremblay as Curtis, Carey Mulligan, Richard E. Grant, Awkwafina, Amandla Stenberg, Tom Waits, Charlie Day, Blythe Danner, Arthur Knight, Maya Erskine, Jake Johnson, Tantoo Cardinal, Rob Delaney, Jemaine Clement, Marc Evan Jackson, Len Cariou, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, Angela Bassett and Mahershala Ali. It will be distributed by Fathom Entertainment and open nationwide in theaters October 23.
