Set in the town of Rust Bank, troubled teenager Kat Elliot (Lyric Ross) is enrolled in Rust Bank Catholic (RBC) after she's deemed a candidate for a special program that enlists juvenile offenders in private schools. Since the death of her parents in the town some years back, Kat has hardened herself against any attachments and maintains an abrasive exterior preventing anyone from getting close to her. Meanwhile in the underworld, two demon brothers, Wendell (Keegan Michael-Key) and Wild (Jordan Peele) are stuck with the menial job of replanting their father's, Buffalo Belzer (Ving Rhames), hair following his discover of the duo's Dream Faire plans. The two discover Kat is a Hell Maiden who can summon them to Earth and contact cat in her dreams, while Wendell and Wild promise to resurrect Kat's long dead premise, the results are not so simple.
Wendell & Wild is the latest film from noted stop-motion animation director Henry Sellick of Coraline and The Nightmare Before Christmas. Selick began working on the film, an adaptation of his unpublished book of the same name, with Jordan Peele and Keegan Michael-Key in 2015 following Selick's brief stint at the Walt Disney Company where Selick's project Shadowmaker/The Shadow King was shelved following meddling from John Lasseter. The film was picked up by Netflix in 2018 with the film going through a lengthy production process that even went through the COVD-19 pandemic with some of the animation being done remotely. The end result of Wendell & Wild is undeniably entertaining, but it's also a very overstuffed movie that can feel a bit unwieldly with how much is going on.
As per usual, the animation on display in Wendell & Wild is quite amazing with the sets and models visually distinct and memorable with some eye-catching designs backed up by solid voice performances from its ensemble cast. The town of Rust Bank is a character in and of itself with the town being virtually empty and only kept alive by the few holdouts who keep the developers from coming in. Needless to say Key and Peele's chemistry is on point in their dialogue exchanges and their energy and passion is well suited to the realm of animation as anyone who saw their role in Storks can attest to. The movie also features a much more diverse cast than we've seen in previous films of this type but still very much makes the story its own. Lyric Ross is very good as Kat our protagonist, Sam Zelaya is also quite good as trans boy Raul, and Tamara Smart is also good playing a character named Siobhan who is played against conventions of being a popular girl stereotype in a refreshing change of pace. The movie also deatures strong supporting players rounding out the supporting cast in Angela Bassett, James Hong, and Ving Rhames and all bring some great life to their roles.
Where Wendell & Wild stumbles however is in its very overstuffed narrative as there are multiple antagonistic parties at work in this story with a company called Klaxon Corp trying to buy out the town, a life giving cream stolen by Wendell & Wild they plan to use to get money for their Dream Faire, James Hong's Father Bests character having a stake in things, and even a pair of demon hunters and there's so many elements stuffed into this story that it can feel a little overwhelming and it feels like the movie could've probably tightened itself a little by paring down or combining story elements to give something more cohesive. In terms of problems for a movie to have a movie with too many ideas is always preferrable to a movie with too few, but it is an issue that holds the film back from being at the same level as Coraline and The Nightmare Before Christmas, but I probably liked it about the same level as Selick's James and the Giant Peach.
Wendell & Wild is a welcome return for director Henry Selick, even if it doesn't reach the high benchmark he's set for himself with his prior work. The film features beautiful design work and solid voice work from its cast, but an overstuffed narrative keeps things from coalescing as much as they should, and the story probably could've benefitted from being streamlined. Overall this is a good film from Selick.
Wendell & Wild is the latest film from noted stop-motion animation director Henry Sellick of Coraline and The Nightmare Before Christmas. Selick began working on the film, an adaptation of his unpublished book of the same name, with Jordan Peele and Keegan Michael-Key in 2015 following Selick's brief stint at the Walt Disney Company where Selick's project Shadowmaker/The Shadow King was shelved following meddling from John Lasseter. The film was picked up by Netflix in 2018 with the film going through a lengthy production process that even went through the COVD-19 pandemic with some of the animation being done remotely. The end result of Wendell & Wild is undeniably entertaining, but it's also a very overstuffed movie that can feel a bit unwieldly with how much is going on.
As per usual, the animation on display in Wendell & Wild is quite amazing with the sets and models visually distinct and memorable with some eye-catching designs backed up by solid voice performances from its ensemble cast. The town of Rust Bank is a character in and of itself with the town being virtually empty and only kept alive by the few holdouts who keep the developers from coming in. Needless to say Key and Peele's chemistry is on point in their dialogue exchanges and their energy and passion is well suited to the realm of animation as anyone who saw their role in Storks can attest to. The movie also features a much more diverse cast than we've seen in previous films of this type but still very much makes the story its own. Lyric Ross is very good as Kat our protagonist, Sam Zelaya is also quite good as trans boy Raul, and Tamara Smart is also good playing a character named Siobhan who is played against conventions of being a popular girl stereotype in a refreshing change of pace. The movie also deatures strong supporting players rounding out the supporting cast in Angela Bassett, James Hong, and Ving Rhames and all bring some great life to their roles.
Where Wendell & Wild stumbles however is in its very overstuffed narrative as there are multiple antagonistic parties at work in this story with a company called Klaxon Corp trying to buy out the town, a life giving cream stolen by Wendell & Wild they plan to use to get money for their Dream Faire, James Hong's Father Bests character having a stake in things, and even a pair of demon hunters and there's so many elements stuffed into this story that it can feel a little overwhelming and it feels like the movie could've probably tightened itself a little by paring down or combining story elements to give something more cohesive. In terms of problems for a movie to have a movie with too many ideas is always preferrable to a movie with too few, but it is an issue that holds the film back from being at the same level as Coraline and The Nightmare Before Christmas, but I probably liked it about the same level as Selick's James and the Giant Peach.
Wendell & Wild is a welcome return for director Henry Selick, even if it doesn't reach the high benchmark he's set for himself with his prior work. The film features beautiful design work and solid voice work from its cast, but an overstuffed narrative keeps things from coalescing as much as they should, and the story probably could've benefitted from being streamlined. Overall this is a good film from Selick.