The horror style all the time goes via waves of various subgenres exploding in recognition, and the present pattern is reimagining basic childhood tales into terrifying journeys. Probably the most notable nonetheless stays the interconnected Twisted Childhood Universe, kickstarted by Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood & Honey, whereas going past it with every thing from Screamboat to Cinderella’s Revenge.
Now, there’s Gale: Yellow Brick Street, Daniel Alexander’s riff on L. Frank Baum’s The Great Wizard of Oz, which could simply be one of many worst efforts but. Between a script that drags the viewer via its 107-minute cycle of psychological thriller tropes, route that is not fairly as suave because it needs to be, and a solid with no thought what sort of movie they’re making, it is one of the vital deviant abominations of horror twists on unlikely supply supplies.
Gale Crawls Down The Yellow Brick Street To The Level Of Placing One To Sleep
Co-written by Alexander — who additionally makes his function directorial debut on the mission — Gale: Yellow Brick Street facilities on Emily, a troubled younger artist who has been experiencing a collection of recurring nightmares involving a girl named Dorothy and her grandmother. This has led to Emily sketching weird imagery and shutting herself out from the world, till she discovers a journal seemingly penned by her mom.
Discovering writings of an alternate realm, and a cellphone quantity for a psychological establishment, Emily heads to the secluded facility within the hopes of studying solutions about her household’s previous. Nevertheless, as she confronts the sinister head of the establishment and turns into trapped amid a storm, the road between actuality and dream start to blur as she discovers her personal ties to Dorothy and the mysterious world of Oz.
On paper, Gale: Yellow Brick Street has a whole lot of components to make for an attention-grabbing spin on its basic supply materials. Many Wizard of Oz variations have solely loosely performed with the concept of it being a dreamland relatively than an actual place, to which Alexander and co-writer Matthew R. Ford search to supply a unique take. Nevertheless, the script alone proves to be one of many film’s largest missteps with simply how confused it’s.
There’s just about no time spent on constructing Emily up as a person within the construct as much as her eventual journey to Oz, because the film clearly appears to maintain these additional layers as mysteries to be unveiled alongside the best way. However the place Dorothy labored as an anchor for audiences to be fascinated in exploring the colourful land of Oz, given she was such a dreamer, Emily already seems like such a scattered mess that it is simple to imagine her model of the world could be a nightmare.
In some methods, it virtually seems like Alexander was extra curious about making a Silent Hill film than he was in a Wizard of Oz reimagining. Its psychological-driven storytelling clearly needs to deeper tie Emily’s damaged psyche to Ouncess state, primarily turning the magical land right into a metaphor for psychological sickness, however with nothing actually to say about it.
Alexander and Ford earn some respect for making an attempt to do one thing totally different with Baum’s materials, however in some methods, it virtually would’ve been higher in the event that they acquired much less heady with Gale: Yellow Brick Street. Say what you’ll concerning the TCU, the filmmakers have a greater understanding of the way to ship a deliriously entertaining replace on their sources of inspiration, from the grotesque slasher thrills of Winnie-the-Pooh to the surprisingly thoughtful-yet-still-grisly Bambi: The Reckoning.
What makes this tonal confusion much more egregious is simply how sluggish Gale: Yellow Brick Street‘s pacing is. Transferring slower than molasses being poured out of a jar, the primary half of the film is an annoying slog of being 20 steps forward of Emily and wishing Alexander and Ford would simply get to the purpose. If it weren’t for the occasional try at a soar scare, this film might simply put one to sleep with simply how boring it performs out.
In some methods, it virtually seems like Alexander was extra curious about making a Silent Hill film than he was in a Wizard of Oz reimagining.
Amidst its points, one factor that Alexander may be counseled for with Gale: Yellow Brick Street is efficiently capturing the dreamlike ambiance of his story. Although not fairly on the identical stage as Denis Villeneuve or OuncesPerkins, administrators who equally love squeezing each ounce of visible glamor out of a scene, the debuting filmmaker nonetheless makes a reasonably luxurious feast of his imagery.
This could additional be felt in his primarily sensible strategy to the film’s results, which equally really feel bold and creative for such an impartial title. Admittedly, the titular yellow brick street is little greater than a handful of shiny yellow bricks scattered alongside a forest street with leaves over them, however new character Patches — seemingly a combo of the Scarecrow and Tin Man — is an intricately designed go well with, whereas the flying monkeys are simply probably the most chilling illustration of the Depraved Witch’s military but.
It is simply really a disgrace that Alexander and Ford’s loftier concepts for Gale: Yellow Brick Street by no means correctly come collectively. The creepy imagery within the first act improperly sells simply how boring the film finally finally ends up being for almost all of its overlong runtime, and whereas its snail-like pacing and lackluster performing fail to make its psychological themes land with something greater than a mute thud.
Gale: Yellow Brick Street is now in theaters.
- Launch Date
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February 11, 2026
- Director
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Daniel Alexander
- Writers
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L. Frank Baum
- Producers
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Charles Strider
Forged
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Chloë Culligan Crump
Emily Gale
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- The visible and manufacturing design selections are suave.
- The movie strikes at a slower-than-snail-like tempo to the purpose of placing viewers to sleep.
- Its ambiance is woefully missing in rigidity and any real scares.
- The story feels prefer it’s 12 steps behind the viewers, and needs to be extra Silent Hill than Oz.
- The performances aren’t all that partaking.