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Wildlife

Play trailer 1:00 Poster for Wildlife PG-13 2018 1h 44m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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94% Tomatometer 220 Reviews 71% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Fourteen-year-old Joe is the only child of Jeanette and Jerry -- a housewife and a golf pro -- in a small town in 1960s Montana. Nearby, an uncontrolled forest fire rages close to the Canadian border, and when Jerry loses his job -- and his sense of purpose -- he decides to join the cause of fighting the fire, leaving his wife and son to fend for themselves. Suddenly forced into the role of an adult, Joe witnesses his mother's struggle as she tries to keep her head above water.
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Wildlife

Wildlife

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Critics Consensus

Wildlife's portrait of a family in crisis is beautifully composed by director Paul Dano -- and brought brilliantly to life by a career-best performance from Carey Mulligan.

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Critics Reviews

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Ben Sachs Chicago Reader 02/29/2020
There's no shaking the feeling that this sort of study of all-American repression has been done to death. Go to Full Review
Peter Howell Toronto Star 01/03/2019
3/4
Few could play a character so ordinary with as much empathy as Oxenbould brings to the role. He's one to watch, here and in the future. Go to Full Review
Sara Michelle Fetters MovieFreak.com 11/17/2018
3.5/4
The jittery physicality of Mulligan's portrayal is frequently surprising. Go to Full Review
JD Duran InSession Film 08/07/2024
Paul Dano’s direction is one of the most confident I’ve seen in recent years from a first-timer at the helm. Go to Full Review
Calum Cooper Source (Scotland) 07/14/2024
4/5
It’s pretty to look at, and harbours strong visual storytelling alongside its top-notch acting. Go to Full Review
Keith Garlington Keith & the Movies 08/21/2022
4.5/5
“Wildlife” has such a strong emotional core, and even as a fiery metaphor burns on the horizon (I’ll let you discover it for yourselves) the film never loses its heart. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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thiago s Oct 7 Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom See more Julian Rex M @Julian_M Jun 14 A thoughtful, well-intentioned drama from debut director Paul Dano, Wildlife's gently moving storyline and soft-spoken but astute examination of familial moral questions easily outweigh its somewhat unrealized emotional and narrative through-lines. See more Jonathan K Apr 13 The film has a quiet, understated quality to it. It's a story about a family falling apart, but in a fairly apathetic way. The cinematography is beautiful, and the performances are stellar. Carey Mulligan absolutely knocks it out of the park (as usual), and Jake Gyllenhaal delivers a solid performance too. The characters, however, feel a bit distant, which may have been on purpose, but it made it hard for me to really connect with them emotionally for most of the film. It wasn't until near the end, when their sadness becomes more apparent, that I felt any real emotional pull. It's a good movie, but I guess I was hoping to be moved more. I wasn't prepared for the simplicity of the storyline. I kept expecting some big, dramatic twists or a shocking ending, but nothing ever really got heightened to that level. See more Andrew M Dec 26 Not sure why this film has gotten such a high rating here? It is slow, but I waited patiently for the plot to develop, but it not only didn’t, it turned out to be highly predictable. And very little happened outside of their home. This film will not set you on fire. And wasn’t even filmed in Montana. See more julie b 09/19/2024 Moving, tender, and heartbreaking, with lots of space and silence to sit in; it’s subdued (a little too much so for me) yet unravels quickly. Has that aftersun vibe of seeing your parents as real, complicated people, not just your parents. Someone please give sweet Joe a big hug!!! Great performances - especially Carrie as a woman unraveling, and Ed as our eyes and the poor son trying to hold it together; Jake is also good but not much air time. Also very strong for a first film by Paul Dano, surprised that it’s a debut and also to not have seen more since then!! “I feel like I need to wake up. But I don’t know what from. Or to” See more David W 01/21/2024 While the pace is on the slow side for my preference, the superb acting from its leads and excellent cinematography more than made up for it. I would watch this again. See more Read all reviews
Wildlife

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Movie Info

Synopsis Fourteen-year-old Joe is the only child of Jeanette and Jerry -- a housewife and a golf pro -- in a small town in 1960s Montana. Nearby, an uncontrolled forest fire rages close to the Canadian border, and when Jerry loses his job -- and his sense of purpose -- he decides to join the cause of fighting the fire, leaving his wife and son to fend for themselves. Suddenly forced into the role of an adult, Joe witnesses his mother's struggle as she tries to keep her head above water.
Director
Paul Dano
Producer
Alex Saks, Paul Dano, Oren Moverman, Ann Ruark, Jake Gyllenhaal, Riva Marker, Andrew Duncan
Screenwriter
Paul Dano, Zoe Kazan
Distributor
IFC Films
Production Co
June Pictures, Nine Stories Productions, Sight Unseen Pictures
Rating
PG-13 (Brief Strong Language|A Sexual Situation|Smoking|Thematic Material)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 19, 2018, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 9, 2019
Box Office (Gross USA)
$1.0M
Runtime
1h 44m
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