Wildwood is quite the achievement. The most ambitious stop-motion animated movie ever made, it is an epic fantasy adventure, with a massive cast, magical world and action.

The second half of this movie is extraordinary.

It may have been stronger as a short story. However, it still succeeds in this form, even if we can catch glimpses of what could have been had the filmmakers pushed the envelope more.

This is a thoughtful, insightful, drama that lends a unique perspective to a seemingly familiar plot.

Very likable, with entertaining performances and sympathetic heroines.

Where it struggles is in making its points not feel forced or biased. It takes things that have been discussed repeatedly over the last decade and reduces them to headlines.

It is inconsistent as a strategy, which is not a tactic we run into very often. Yet it never justifies its existence with a purpose. It is an intriguing misfire.

The problem is that the screenplay allows us to get ahead of the story, in an effort to trick us. However, we get multiple steps ahead to the point where we either guess correctly or our speculation turns out to be more interesting than where the story actually ends up going.

it is about a moment in our culture that brought on the explosion of true crime documentaries and podcasts of the last several years. This is a tense and moody portrayal, with Robert Pattinson giving a tremendous brooding performance as a self-absorbed man who doesn’t give a thought to who he could possibly be hurting, as long as he stays famous.

Zach Cregger has vowed not to get involved with existing franchises again. However, if Resident Evil is his only attempt at it, it is a really good one.