WAKE WOOD is a Hammer Films production/presentation with Hammer CEO Simon Oakes one of the driving forces behind getting the film made. It’s officially listed as an Irish/Swedish co-production and features location shooting in Donegal with some studio work done in Sweden. Together they make up the fictional town of Wake Wood where it is possible to bring the dead back to life…but only for 3 days. There is a surprising amount of subtext under the traditional storyline that gives WAKE WOOD added depth. A young medical couple (he’s a vet, she’s a pharmacist) lose their 9 year old daughter in a vicious accident. They relocate to Wake Wood without knowing the town’s secret. Once they find out, they go through a special ritual involving the whole village in order to get her back. Everything is fine at first but then things go horribly wrong.
What makes WAKE WOOD so intriguing is how it combines elements of DON’T LOOK NOW with those of the original WICKER MAN while remaining an original film in its own right. At 82 minutes (minus credits), it’s lean and mean with no wasted footage and has a wonderfully creepy aura thanks to atmospheric cinematography and a haunting, unsettling music score. All the acting is top notch especially Timothy Spall as the village elder and Ella Connoly as the resurrected daughter. The quality control on all the new Hammer films has been top grade but up until recently they have had trouble finding audiences in America. LET ME IN tanked, THE RESIDENT went straight to DVD as did WAKE WOOD. However Hammer’s last effort, a remake of THE WOMAN IN BLACK with Daniel Radcliffe, has achieved worldwide success with a total gross of over $100 million.
The Capsule Critic 