‘I stopped believing this stuff a long time ago,’ despairs world-weary teenager Prue (voiced by Peyton Elizabeth Lee), who finds herself up against magical forces as she attempts to rescue her baby brother Mac. Kidnapped by a murder of crows, Mac has been taken from his Portland home into the wild woods, hotly pursued by Prue and her nerdy pal Curtis (Jacob Tremblay). Based on the 2011 novel by Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis, Wildwood sees modern animation maestros Laika (Coraline, ParaNorman, Kubo And The Two Strings) push the boundaries content-wise as they give us full-blooded peril in a family film context, including a barnstorming and brutal battle scene. 

Adding clout to the voice cast is Carey Mulligan as the children’s grief-stricken yet fearsome adversary Alexandra, a dowager governess who is raising a powerful army in the aftermath of her young son’s death. Mahershala Ali takes on the role of a gruff goody, the Bandit King Brendan, who Curtis joins forces with, while Awkwafina, Angela Bassett and Richard E Grant play a helpful rat, eagle and owl, respectively.

Shot by six-time Oscar nominee Caleb Deschanel and painstakingly brought to life by stop-motion, the results are extraordinary. It’s hard to recall an animation having such physical and emotional presence. Whether animal or human, the characters are affectingly expressive, while the film’s lovely, luxurious and Tolkien-esque world-building takes us from the infuriating and amusing bureaucracy of South Wood to the mystical charm of the north, to climactic scenes set in the gorgeously overgrown Ancient’s Grove, with much darkness and drama in between.

Wildwood boldly sacrifices accommodating younger or more sensitive children in favour of an impactfully threatening, far-from-sugar-coated story that refuses to diminish life-or-death moments, and is all the better for it. This is a stunningly beautiful achievement and a credible contender for film of the year.

Wildwood is in cinemas from Friday 23 October.