Nicolas Cage is a name we all know and love, for the most part. His ability to adapt to any role is what intrigues many of us, and this time Cage seems to be going where he’s never gone before with upcoming movie, Willy's Wonderland.
Nic Cage in Willy's Wonderland / Picture Credit: JD Entertainment
The plot and what the trailer tells us
The plot seems to be clear cut and simple from what the trailer tells us. Nicolas Cage’s character’s (simple called Janitor) car breaks down on a quiet road.
Rescue comes in the form of a man in a very big cowboy hat who offers Cage a deal – work in Willy’s Wonderland for one night and he’ll pay to get his car fixed. Simple, right?
Well, apparently not. In this Five Nights at Freddy’s style movie it seems all is not well at Willy’s. In the background of some shots you can see some of the animatronics move ever so slightly, unseen by The Janitor.
This is where the trailer gets a little comical. One of the other people trapped in Willy’s during the night states that “he’s not trapped in here with them, they’re trapped in here with him”, talking about The Janitor.
This is rather amusing as the delivery of this line is a little too try-hard and makes it funny rather than serious, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing; it just probably isn’t how they intended it to sound.
From then on, what we see is a mixture of Nic Cage beating the absolute sh*t out of some stuffed animals, and genuinely creepy looking dolls which, presumably, Cage also beats to death.
We can see that this film does not take itself too seriously, which can be both a good thing and a bad thing depending on how the movie plays out.
The trailer shows us little to do with the story, which could be due to the narrative being very 80s slasher movie in the sense that it is a group of teens or young people (for the most part) who are trapped among something horrible.
There are a million ways you can do this plot, but Cage cleaning pinball machines and attacking mechanic animals? That’s something we’ve never seen before!
Cast and crew
Directing the movie is Kevin Lewis, who sat in the director’s chair for Jason Memoa-led flick Braven.
The cast is as follows; Caylee Cowan plays Kathy, Beth Grant plays Sheriff Lund, and Terayle Hill plays Bob McDaniel. With Cage and some rising stars, this film might just put the aforementioned talent on the map.
Cage is producing the film, along with Grant Cramer, Bryan Lord, Michael Nilon, and David Ozer.
Our verdict so far
The trailer seemingly shows the movie to essentially be a bit of a joke, or so it seems.
Cage seems to be the big selling point, as does the Five Nights At Freddy’s vibe the trailer is throwing out.
However, the film does appear to be able to give us some laughs. Whether this is intentional or not remains to be seen, but it does appear that those involved have gone for the comedic-horror trope.
The possibility of the film being funny if it is indeed legitimately intended as a horror isn’t a bad thing. The film may still entertain you, whether you laugh or are a bit shocked by the events.
Long verdict short, the trailer makes the film seem like it will be a laugh no matter its (intended or otherwise) genre – but may not be for everyone.
Willy’s Wonderland is coming to on-demand from February 12th, 2021.
Written by Melissa, who you can follow on Twitter @melissajournal
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