Willy’s Wonderland

• Directed by Kevin Lewis
• February 12, 2021 (US)

After his tire goes out on the road, a drifter cleans a closed family restaurant in exchange of payment for work on his vehicle but soon encounters something dark and semester.

Nicolas Cage is no stranger to strange stuff. From his film work to himself he is a man of oddity. Willy’s Wonderland though is one of his quirkier efforts. And one that works. The old Chuck E. Cheese with its creepy animatronics was pure nightmare fuel. You could just see them breaking free and running amok and that is clearly some of the inspiration.

There is something unique done with Cage’s character. Cage’s character (referred to in the credits as ‘The Janitor’) never speaks a line in this movie. Not one syllable. There is the occasional sound when appropriate such as a grunt or some heavy breathing, but he has no dialogue here. Yet we manage to get a character. That is something I cannot recall being done for a hero though it is not uncommon for villains. Tom Hardy as Mad Max is the closest I can think of as it took about 30 minutes for his character to say something in Fury Road.

The whole story hinges on the Janitor and if he had been performed by anybody else other than Nick Cage this movie would’ve fallen apart despite being an intriguing idea. Cage is the only person capable of pulling this off. He has often said he never phoned it in during his direct to video days and I agree with that. Even in some of the weirdest stuff like Between Worlds he did not put a halfhearted effort in but gave as much as he could for the work.

If having to spend the night cleaning a Chuck E. Cheese knock off wasn’t bad enough it seems that these animatronic characters are possessed with the spirits of the deceased staff who were led by a killer and now regularly come to life and kill people that are trapped inside.

This is a horror comedy that embraces the absurdity. The Janitor is a dangerous yet mysterious fighter. The story implies The Janitor is more than he seems. The scenario of the story is he is not trapped with the characters but rather the characters are trapped with him. You’re even left with a feeling that he somehow knows the truth about Willy’s Wonderland though that’s just my impression.

The group of teens they have in here are not entirely disposable and have enough that their deaths actually matter. They’re all cannon fodder but you at least can get somewhat invested in them so that their eventual demise matters to you. And they’re believable as individuals. Our final girl Liv (Emily Tosta) is the most unrealistic but then again she is the final girl.

Willy’s Wonderland from start to finish is just bonkers. It’s weird kills and excessive action scenes all set within what should be a bland and commercialized environment. And the punchline to the whole thing is not only does The Janitor clean up the whole place overnight but mostly takes care of the possessed animatronic problem.

The humor and tone of Willy’s Wonderland reminds me of something from the great Joe Dante. Director Kevin Lewis blends humor and horror to craft dark absurdity that occasionally touches on commentary on commercialism. This hooks you from the start with that and never lets go.

This for a direct video release is an amazingly well done film. The production values are better than I would’ve guessed. You can believe not only that it’s a local attraction but that it’s functional too.

I can’t find anything to complain about in this movie. There are no narrative holes. It looks good. And it’s well directed. I can see someone complaining about not knowing The Janitor’s actual name but would that have changed anything? It’s completely unnecessary to have a complete biographical background on somebody. You need just enough for the characters to get you through the movie. If there’s a sequel then you expand as the sequel dictates.

Willy’s Wonderland is an interesting concept that is well executed. This isn’t something for the general movie goer but for someone who likes either dark comedy in the vein of Joe Dante or is a fan of horror this is something that you should check out.