[music: bespoke “Yakety Sax” cover, but largo]
Previously on Midlife Crisis Crossover: My son and I don’t see animated features in theaters nearly as often as we did when he was younger, but we keep an eye out. We miss the days when every new Disney and Pixar release was an immediate must-see. So far this year we’ve only been lured to the big screen for the mixed-messaging antics of Toy Story 5 and the winning meta-hybrid Coyote vs. Acme. Rest assured we won’t be adding this weekend’s new Cat in the Hat to our dance card, which looks like a garish ADHD collection of studio execs’ worst guesses at what sheltered preschoolers might think is “cool” — e.g., loud noises, flashing lights, goofy dances, plush toys, the multiverse, etc.
Stepping into animation’s quality vacuum are the dedicated artists at Laika Studios, who arose from the ashes of Will Vinton Studios (yep, the California Raisins ad-makers) to dominate the ever-shrinking world of stop-motion animation. Last time we saw Laika writ large, I was in awe of 2016’s Kubo and the Two Strings for its “expansive panoramas, intricate settings, and dynamic fight sequences — some in midair, some on the animated seas — [which] would be a mighty feat if they were 100% CG. While computers added details around the edges, it’s staggering to contemplate how much of the film was painstakingly handcrafted in miniature and tediously yet lovingly shot frame-by-frame over the course of years. It’s a wonder the animators had the mental stamina to pursue this undertaking without cracking under pressure and setting things on fire.”
I wasn’t convinced at first by the trailers for their last film, 2019’s Missing Link, which felt like Aardman discards, but it won me over later when I caught it for my Oscars Quest. We didn’t repeat that mistake for their sixth and latest, the ambitious urban-fantasy epic Wildwood. Yet another collaboration between director Travis Knight and screenwriter Chris Butler (arguably faring better here than they did with Masters of the Universe), it’s another staggering, handcrafted achievement that deserves to have its vistas witnessed on the largest possible entertainment machines.
