By MICHAEL GINGOLD
An outing to the woods could be fatal to these friends.
Vertical brings THE WILD (previously known as WILDER THAN HER) to theaters today. Directed by Jessica Kozak from her screenplay (which was on the 2020 Blood List), it stars Sunita Mani, Kate Easton, Kayla Foster, Danny Deferrari, Becca Q. Co and Adam Faison. The synopsis: “In THE WILD, the tragic death of their best friend Bea [Co] has splintered longtime friends Emilia [Mani], Finn [Easton], and Lucey [Foster], until Emilia convinces them to go on their annual camping trip to reconnect. But once they are alone in the woods, things grow increasingly strange and distrust blossoms in the isolated forest. They begin to suspect each other of terrible things, forcing them to call into question their friendship and own morality.”
“I really love examining the horrors in everyday relationships,” Kozak says, “so THE WILD allowed me to explore what happens when friendships begin to unravel as questions and distrust permeate throughout the entire group. Creating this dread and unease that escalates when your place of safety turns into a place of danger was fascinating and fun for me.”
