“Wednesday” proves wicked, woeful

Abby Bartleson

After watching countless movies from director Tim Burton, I have grown to love his oddball, gothic film style and Netflix’s “Wednesday” executed this flawlessly. Released Nov. 23 (which was conveniently on a Wednesday), the Addams Family is back in a modern era, filled with gore and teenage drama.

Set in New England, Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) is shipped off by her mother, Morticia (Catherine Zeta-Jones) and father, Gomez (Luis Guzmán), to Nevermore Academy — a boarding school which was founded in 1791 whose purpose is to educate and “nurture outcasts, freaks and monsters.”

After arriving, filled with darkness and wit, Wednesday shows little interest in her peers and she schemes to escape, but she soon realizes there is much more to the school than it appears. With her emerging psychic abilities, she begins to unravel an unsolved mystery from 25 years prior.

Without hesitation, I knew I would like this show. Ortega rocked her role and I enjoyed the modernity of the setting — making it non Gen-Z specific, (please stop referencing Instagram, Snapchat or TikTok). Ortega’s chemistry with her castmates worked perfectly, even with her deadpan deliverance of lines and no-nonsense mindset as Wednesday.

Along with the current-day storyline, costume designer Colleen Atwood did an exceptional job at articulating each character’s aesthetic and distinct quirks through their clothing in a contemporary fashion. I especially enjoyed Wednesday’s roommate Edin Sinclair (Emma Myers) poking at her to break her out of her shell and you can visually see it through her wardrobe choices as the story progresses. A fun directing choice was including the original 1991 Wednesday Addams (Christina Ricci) cast as the Nevermore herbology professor. Her appearance in the show made it much more enticing to watch because of the nostalgia factor. The only real critique I have for the show is that some of the CGI looked very unrealistic and made me giggle about the quality because of the immersive feel of the production. Other than that minor detail, I thoroughly enjoyed this haunting show.

If you’re looking for a hair-raising but humorous show loaded with dark twists and turns, I recommend checking out “Wednesday” on Netflix.

Infographic by Modesty Manion Source Imdb.com

Modesty Manion

Dominic Fike, the popular alternative hip hop artist featured in “Euphoria” is coming to the Fillmore Dec. 11 as a part of his “Out of Order” tour. The show is ages 15+, with doors opening at 7 p.m. and the concert starting at 8 p.m. Over a decade after the first movie, “Avatar: The Way of Water” will hit theaters Dec. 16. The sequel is directed by James Cameron and the cast includes notable names, such as Sigourney Weaver, Kate Winslet and Vin Diesel. “SZNS: Winter” will be the last of Weezer’s 4-album “SZNZ” project. Because the EPs have been released on the coinciding seasons’ solstice or equinox, the winter installation will be released Dec. 21 on the winter solstice. The Loppet Foundation will be hosting their Pre-Loppet nordic ski and fat tire bike races Jan. 15 at Theodore Wirth Park. The event will offer many different race options in preparation for the City of Lakes Loppet Winter Festival.