By Ben Wright (@iamzavagno | www.xgeeks.co.uk)
This review is spoiler-free.
From visionary auteurs, Henry Selick and Jordan Peele comes a unique animated tale of life and death, featuring an ensemble cast of talented performers – welcome to Wendell & Wild!
I am a huge admirer of both Peele and Selick, with the former being the master artist behind two of my favourite animated films of all time – A Nightmare Before Christmas and Coraline – add Peele’s unique and satirical storytelling and the result is the perfect combination of film and writing artistry! While there is always a visually unique tone to all of Selick’s films, I think taking the approach to telling the story through a lens that has black culture at the front and centre added to the freshness and appeal of the movie.
While there were still some of the classic Selick flourishes and visuals in the animation and design, the models themselves were new and unique, which I think added to my enjoyment as this was yet another layer of something we haven’t seen before. The innovation doesn’t stop at the surface level either, as Selick and his team have purposely made the modelling process full of imperfections! This is a response to the fact that animation is so slick these days, it is difficult to see the difference between modelling and CGI. I enjoy these imperfections wholeheartedly and firmly believe that it just adds to the charm of the visuals and creative process. Selick is reunited with Coraline composer Bruno Coulais, whose score is exquisite throughout the movie. As for the soundtrack, the movie is packed full of ‘absolute bangers’ and features one of my favourite Ska songs of all time – so that was an instant win!
Regarding the story, I thought it was a pretty universal tale, and the situation and characters were very relatable, so just because we have a film that has so many amazing black cultural elements within the DNA of the movie, it in no way is a barrier to any aspect of the film. If anything, again because we don’t usually get these types of scenarios in mainstream mediums, I think this makes the film even more enjoyable. There were a few slight pacing issues, and the overall story framework was unremarkable, but it was nothing that stopped me from enjoying the movie. I also thought the inclusion of a transgender character into the heart of the story was very welcome and appreciated. As the character should be, he was normalised by his peers, and while they cleverly called out situations, from adults, these were enough to make a serious point, but also not restrict the character to being solely defined as ‘the transgender character’. They were just another normal, realistic character in the movie – how it should be!
As for the cast, it is overflowing with amazing performances! Keegan-Michael Key (Wendall) and Jordan Peele (Wild) were fantastic, and having so much previous history performing together, really made the chemistry explode on screen organically. This was my first experience with Lyric Ross (Koniqua) and I thought she was fantastic in the lead role! It was a hardened and confident portrayal, but when the situation required fragility and openness, she delivered by the bucket load! I am very excited to see more from her in the upcoming Ironheart series! As for the villains, of course, you have to cast the Brits – we do it so well! David Harewood (Lane Klaxon) and Maxine Peake (Irmgard Klaxon) were ignorantly evil, but also incredibly incompetent, much like the real-life people they were based on – once you see them in action you will know exactly who that is! Moving to the supporting roles, if you cast Angela Bassett (Sister Helley), James Hong (Father Bests) and Ving Rhames (Buffalo Belzer) you know you are going to get quality performances and that is exactly what they delivered!
Overflowing with stunning visuals and packed full of incredible performances, Wendell & Wild is a fantastic movie from two visionary auteurs who, both tonally and ideologically, are not afraid to push the boundaries of family entertainment.
X-Geeks 