#peele

About a month ago, I watched Wendell and Wild on Netflix. I know it's been a minute, but I had to sit on my thoughts for a while. You see clay-mation horror films contain a feeling of nostalgia for me, considering the popularity of classics like The Nightmare Before Christmas and Coraline. Wendell and Wild, being directed by the same master of clay animation, Henry Selick, seemed to purposefully contrast the image of Tim Burton's family horror genre in its capacity to include people of color. This purposeful and creative insertion of Black people, Black culture, and contemporary issues made me question the validity of my nostalgic memories and assess the messaging behind the film.

Tim Burton has occasionally alluded to Black people and characters not fitting the aesthetic of his films, when asked about his primarily White casting. That, folks, is a can of worms if I've ever seen one. Without getting into the psychology of his statements, they were very controversial remarks that served as a talking point within the Black community. Additionally, Selick's continued partnership with Burton gave Selick much creative freedom but resulted in primarily Burton's acclaim. Ultimately, Selick does not share the same views about Blackness in horror media, and he decided to reach out to the iconic Key and Peele with an idea for a new project.

Whether it was purposeful or not, (likely it was, due to Peele's progress in the Black horror genre) the trio would create a counterargument of a film to challenge the concerns of Burton. Though most would likely agree that style, artistic expression, and various aesthetics are raceless and genderless, a contemporary example is always helpful. In Wendell and Wild, we are presented with a Black, goth girl as our protagonist who certainly doesn't hold back when it comes to teenage angst and supernatural surprises. We are also shown a compassionate, transgender character who was pleasantly multi-dimensional in both the plot and in personality. The dialogue is filled with AAV, Afro-centric subliminal messages, and some hilarious, Black-inspired one-liners. There is also some educational commentary on the school-to-prison pipeline which largely affects Black and Latin demographics, and you can read more about it here.

The artistic style of the film and the animation quality was top tier. I would recommend watching the film just to see what an amazing production the film actually is for the eye. Additionally, there were interesting interpretations of various environments, like hell being an amusement park or a manifestation of consciousness being a neon green, internal landscape. There was a lot of creativity in this film, resulting in a whacky whimsicalness that children are sure to love. The new take also held my attention as an adult viewer, because I was curious about the world-building aspects.

While I personally enjoyed watching the film, I don't find it to be particularly memorable. Perhaps I cannot compare it to the emotions I felt while viewing the other aforementioned films because I no longer have the lens of a child. I worry the film did not gain the popularity it deserved in relation to other hits like Paranorman and Corpse Bride. Obviously, the Wendell and Wild is fundamentally different from the other films in many ways, but something about the tropes in the plot or the incorporation of progressive modernism grounded the fictional movie in too much reality. It felt very much as if I was watching a television special rather than a children's feature film. Though many new concepts were introduced, it was predictable enough to leave little room for imagination of the viewer.