'Wildwood': A comedy, horror movie, and coming-of-age drama all in one

LAIKA, the award-winning studio behind such stop-motion gems as Coraline, Paranorman and Kubo and the Two Strings, now brings us its most ambitious project yet.

After a tremendously long break (seven years!) since the release of their last animated creation, the small but acclaimed company has produced a transporting fantasy adventure in the tradition of beloved classics like The Chronicles of Narnia and Spirited Away.

At a whopping 132 minutes, this is by far the longest stop-motion film in history.

Family audiences will no doubt love it with its humane characterisation and intrepid style, though the dark tone of this 12A-rated film is worth keeping in mind for parents. Disney it is not.

In Portland, Oregon, independent-minded teenager Prue is taking her baby brother Mac out for a walk in the local woods.

Along the way she bumps into a friend, the bashful, nerdy Curtis.

When the trio gets to the woods, Mac is abducted by a murder of crows, certainly not the most mundane thing to expect on a sunny afternoon.

The area is known as the Impassable Wilderness and the two friends bravely set about trying to find the lost boy. In the woods, they come across various anthropomorphized creatures, some friendly, others most certainly not.

After some investigation, Prue learns that Mac and been taken by the mysterious dowager governess Alexandra, who commands a loyal army of vicious coyotes.

Animal allies inform Prue that the dowager is actually a banished witch, who plans to use Mac as sacrifice in an evil, maniacal spell.

Though facing seemingly impossible odds, Prue works with her new friends; human, avian, mammal and otherwise, to rescue Mac and put a stop to the dastardly plot once and for all.

Based on the 2011 novel by Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis and armed with a hefty $100 million budget, Laika are certainly leaving no holds barred.

The studio has had financial challenges in recent years so perhaps, they feel such an ambitious punt is worth taking at the box office.

With an impressive voice cast that includes Carey Mulligan, Angela Bassett and Tom Waits talent and craftsmanship is stacked in all departments.

The animation is often genuinely breathtaking with its little animated figures ably supported by detailed sets and the occasional use of CG effects.

The story features plenty of tropes that have appeared in previous Laika films, from the presence of emotionally scarred protagonists (and antagonists), malevolent witch-like creatures and unlikely wildlife allies.

The tone is often quite heavy and the action can be surprisingly intense and violent.

Regardless, the film does aim to tug on the heartstrings and manages to do so successfully, even if the running time sometimes feels a wee bit stretched.

The final battle between the fair-natured characters and villainous witch rivals anything in recent fantasy films of note and certainly comparison with the works of Miyazaki and CS Lewis can be considered justified.

Wildwood isn’t perfect but its charming adventurism, stunning animation and intelligent script carry this lengthy film along nicely enough.

RATING: ****

Matthew McCaul