2025
In Wake Wood, a grisly tale of grief unfolds in the aftermath of a devastating loss. When their young daughter Alice is brutally killed by a dog, Patrick (played by Littlefinger), a veterinarian, and his wife Louise retreat to the Irish countryside, hoping distance might soften their unbearable pain. Nestled in a remote, rural pocket where wind turbines and old-world mysteries coexist, each casting long shadows over the other, they discover an extraordinary possibility: an ancient pagan ritual that can briefly return the dead, offering families three days to say a proper goodbye.
Peter Pettigrew is Arthur (sorry, but that’s how I best know this actor), a village elder familiar with the community’s hidden, ancient rhythms and traditions passed down through generations. When Arthur reveals the ritual that could momentarily restore their daughter, the couple sees a lifeline through their overwhelming grief. But grief makes desperate people careless, and they promptly and spectacularly ignore the ritual’s carefully maintained rules.
I felt for them, truly. But good grief, did they fuck things up. Their flagrant violation threatens an intricate system that has sustained this community for generations. This isn’t just about one grieving couple’s moment of weakness, it’s about shitting on a delicate social contract that has kept something ancient and dangerous at bay. Ooh, that made me so mad!
Though never gratuitous or grotesque, there are scenes that are definitely graphic and visceral – the brutal dog attack that kills Alice, the ritual’s gory preparation involving a recently deceased body, Alice’s final rampage through the village, and probably lots of other stuff too. There were a lot of carcasses, I guess it what I am saying. Just a small forewarning, if that bothers you. But for those drawn to horror that thrums with the pulse of ancient traditions and buried secrets, Wake Wood delivers a perfectly serviceable dark, twisted tale of grief and consequence.
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