Wild Eyed and Wicked 2024 Movie Review
A different approach is taken in Wild Eyed and Wicked. The film follows Lily Pierce (Molly Kunz) as she struggles with dark family secrets. The film begins as a slow-burn drama and ends with a horrifying and literal fight as Lily attempts to liberate her family of evil that has been taken from them for generations.
Pay close attention to the opening scenes. Everything in the beginning will be important once the drama shifts to a very dark fantasy.
It’s important to note that the first half of the film is a slowly teased-out drama. Lily’s life in the present is defined and connected to the traumatic death of her mother. The film slowly reveals that Lily is estranged from her dad, Gregory (Michael X. Sommers). He is still at the family home, dying of colon cancer and depression.
Lily’s haphazard life and estrangement are soon explained as her nightmares increase. At her childhood home, Lily’s reality begins to slide back into the horror she lived as a child. Soon, the monsters that haunted her after her mother’s death return. Lily must defeat them, with only the aid of her therapist (Colleen Camp) and girlfriend (Claire Saunders).
This is where Wild Eyed and Wicked gets fantastic. The horror elements seep in. This is also where the audience will begin to see the generational trauma thread. Lily’s mom comes from a long line of tragic deaths, depression and darkness. Her father is also suffering from survivor’s guilt. Their tense and awkward encounters do not prepare the audience for the last half of the movie.
This film is the first time that I’ve seen generational trauma literally fought in a medieval fashion. The ultimate message is that the family must first acknowledge the trauma, and then face it bravely before it can be defeated.
Wild Eyed and Wicked does take a moment to adjust to the genre switch-up from drama to fantasy. The first half is often “longwinded” in its story buildup. There seems to be a lot of background about Lily that the film could do without. However, the sometimes sluggish opening is made up by the action at the end.
The film was shot in 16 days on the same farm that writer/director G.S. Foxwood grew up on. The story is inspired by the life and work of Elizabeth Foxwood.
