You never know what will come out of the woods, which is why folklore is filled with strange creatures creeping out from the treeline. Wildling runs with this fear, combining ancient tales of discovered children with a new mythological beast to try and scare the bejesus out of hardened horror fans.
Bel Powley plays a teenage girl found in a remote cabin. She had been kept isolated by a man (Brad Dourif) who used the story of wildlings to keep her inside and ‘safe’. The creature tears apart children, he said, and if she were to venture outside she would be lost. When a local sheriff (Liv Tyler) discovers the girl and brings her back to the small town she protects, she might have unwittingly brought the beasts with her.
The film is the debut feature for director and co-writer Fritz Böhm, who along with Florian Eder has crafted a story that fits into the familiar subgenre of coming-of-age horror. I don’t mean familiar as a slight; playing up this tumultuous time for frights will never go out of style, and all reports out of SXSW indicate that the pair have made a notable entry in the subgenre. It’s no surprise that IFC Midnight (a specialty division for genre films) picked up distribution and are unleashing it quickly. Good horror movies are easy moneymakers, and Wildling looks like good horror.
Wildling is directed by Fritz Böhm and stars Bell Powley, Liv Tyler, and Brad Dourif. It will be released in the US in theaters and on demand on April 13th, 2018 and in the UK on April 20th, 2018. For international release dates, click here.
Do you think Wildling will bring the scares? Let us know in the comments!
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