That is part of the charm of diving into any new venture by one of the GOATs of our time. You never truly know what you’re going to get. For every Mandy, there’s a Ghost Rider. For every Adaptation, there’s an Amos and Andrew. For every Con Air, there’s a Con Air.
Willy’s Wonderland falls in the Drive Angry category. A more fun than it should be down-and-dirty B-Movie. Cage’s character isn’t even a character. He’s just listed as “The Janitor”. A wordless machine bent on taking out the possessed animatronic characters that haunt the Chuck-E-Cheese style restaurant that has been closed for years. The film is short on story and long on Cage beating the ever-living demonic snot out of each character that comes in his way.
The film is more of a vibe than anything else. You get a bit of background on why these animatronic characters have been possessed and why they are still around. If one has seen a film of similar ilk, one will be able to see any of the mythology a mile away. However, it’s all done in a better-than-average script by G. O. Parsons and it’s slightly elevated by director Kevin Lewis and cinematographer David Newbert.
The best part is in fact the FX work and the way the duo shoots said work. There’s a style and liveliness to the way that the animatronics work. They are not at all jaunty. In fact, they manage to keep them looking as creepy as one would hope for with just a dash of the silly. One can’t help but laugh as Cage tears these things limb from limb as the Evil Dead-style bile arterial sprays in every direction imaginable.
Willy’s Wonderland will delight any Cage superfan. Anyone else mileage will be dependent on how much one loves a healthy side of cheese in their horror films.
The Transfer
The 4K Transfer produced or provided to Scream Factory is a solid healthy representation of the film. Scream has provided Dolby Vision (HDR-10 Compatible) encoding for the additional pop … and pop it does. The film’s contrasted colorful and dark imagery is luminous in UHD. The transfer is razor sharp with nary a blemish or issue like digital artifacting or ghosting.
The Extras
They include the following;
“Inside Fun” Featurette
Set Tour with Actor Christian Del Grosso
“Fresh Meat” Featurette
“Colorful Darkness And The Demon-Atrons” Featurette
Trailer
Image Galleries
“Inside Fun” Featurette (7:38) – the all-to-brief making of featurette that’s more about discussing the plot and style they’ve brought to the film. Though Cage is engaged in this making of and him calling it “Pale Rider meets Killer Klown from Outer Space” is about as perfect summation as there ever was for the film. There is some great b-roll footage of the FX work. Featuring comments by Cage, director Kevin Lewis, actors Emily Tosta, Christian Del Grosso, producers Jeremy Davis, Grant Cramer, David Ozer and others.
Set Tour with Actor Christian Del Grosso (2:33) – a quick walk-thru done by the actor which gives us a closer look at the various details within the sets.
“Fresh Meat” Featurette (1:10) – a quick featurette looking at the young actors in the film. Featuring Emily Tosta, Christian Del Grosso, Kai Kadlec, Jonathan Mercedes, Caylee Cowan, and Terayle Hill.
“Colorful Darkness And The Demon-Atrons” Featurette (1:44) – an all-to-brief look at the various visual look and FX of the film. Again featuring some great b-roll footage of the FX work.
Image Galleries – it’s divided into two separate galleries.
Character Teaser Gallery – consisting of 10 posters for the various animatronic characters and Nic Cage’s Janitor.
Character Poster Gallery – consisting of 8 character posters featured in the Willy’s Wonderland restaurant that features prominently in the film.
Trailer (1:50)
The Final Thought
Willy’s Wonderland is a visual treat on 4K. Scream has provided a wonderful transfer for this collector’s edition. Recommended for the Cage fanatic.
Nicolas Cage has come to Willy’s Wonderland to clean up and kick some ass. Scream Factory has given us a new 4K UHD edition loaded with special features.
The Film
Not all Nicolas Cage films are created equal.
That is part of the charm of diving into any new venture by one of the GOATs of our time. You never truly know what you’re going to get. For every Mandy, there’s a Ghost Rider. For every Adaptation, there’s an Amos and Andrew. For every Con Air, there’s a Con Air.
Willy’s Wonderland falls in the Drive Angry category. A more fun than it should be down-and-dirty B-Movie. Cage’s character isn’t even a character. He’s just listed as “The Janitor”. A wordless machine bent on taking out the possessed animatronic characters that haunt the Chuck-E-Cheese style restaurant that has been closed for years. The film is short on story and long on Cage beating the ever-living demonic snot out of each character that comes in his way.
The film is more of a vibe than anything else. You get a bit of background on why these animatronic characters have been possessed and why they are still around. If one has seen a film of similar ilk, one will be able to see any of the mythology a mile away. However, it’s all done in a better-than-average script by G. O. Parsons and it’s slightly elevated by director Kevin Lewis and cinematographer David Newbert.
The best part is in fact the FX work and the way the duo shoots said work. There’s a style and liveliness to the way that the animatronics work. They are not at all jaunty. In fact, they manage to keep them looking as creepy as one would hope for with just a dash of the silly. One can’t help but laugh as Cage tears these things limb from limb as the Evil Dead-style bile arterial sprays in every direction imaginable.
Willy’s Wonderland will delight any Cage superfan. Anyone else mileage will be dependent on how much one loves a healthy side of cheese in their horror films.
The Transfer
The 4K Transfer produced or provided to Scream Factory is a solid healthy representation of the film. Scream has provided Dolby Vision (HDR-10 Compatible) encoding for the additional pop … and pop it does. The film’s contrasted colorful and dark imagery is luminous in UHD. The transfer is razor sharp with nary a blemish or issue like digital artifacting or ghosting.
The Extras
They include the following;
“Inside Fun” Featurette (7:38) – the all-to-brief making of featurette that’s more about discussing the plot and style they’ve brought to the film. Though Cage is engaged in this making of and him calling it “Pale Rider meets Killer Klown from Outer Space” is about as perfect summation as there ever was for the film. There is some great b-roll footage of the FX work. Featuring comments by Cage, director Kevin Lewis, actors Emily Tosta, Christian Del Grosso, producers Jeremy Davis, Grant Cramer, David Ozer and others.
Set Tour with Actor Christian Del Grosso (2:33) – a quick walk-thru done by the actor which gives us a closer look at the various details within the sets.
“Fresh Meat” Featurette (1:10) – a quick featurette looking at the young actors in the film. Featuring Emily Tosta, Christian Del Grosso, Kai Kadlec, Jonathan Mercedes, Caylee Cowan, and Terayle Hill.
“Colorful Darkness And The Demon-Atrons” Featurette (1:44) – an all-to-brief look at the various visual look and FX of the film. Again featuring some great b-roll footage of the FX work.
Image Galleries – it’s divided into two separate galleries.
Trailer (1:50)
The Final Thought
Willy’s Wonderland is a visual treat on 4K. Scream has provided a wonderful transfer for this collector’s edition. Recommended for the Cage fanatic.
Scream Factory’s 4K UHD Edition of Willy’s Wonderland is out February 13th
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