Open Channel: ‘Clayface,’ ‘Wildwood,’ ‘Klara,’ & ‘Wicker’ Edition

What’s better than one movie than weekend? How’s about four, starting with Clayface? Not a Batman in sight, meaning Tom Rhys Harries’ Matt Hagen gets the spotlight all to himself as an actor whose disfigurement leads to him pursuing any path back to fame. Unfortunately, the path he does take uses nanomachines that heal his face and later give him the power to shapeshift. Bad for Gothamites, but good for viewers, if the positive response is anything to go by. Alternatively, maybe you didn’t want to see man become a monster, but to fall in love. (Well, fall in love and not murder gangsters while wearing someone else’s face.) In that case, you had Wicker, wherein Alexander Skarsgård plays a man literally made of the material built to be Olivia Colman’s husband. Based on Ursula Willis’ short story The Wicker Husband, this too has a solid reception and gotten plenty of online chatter because…well, you look at its romance novel-inspired poster or hear the premise, how can you not be interested? Or maybe you went and saw Wildwood? The latest Laika movie’s been getting a big push lately, mostly in terms of showing off its spectacle and the work that went into creating it. It’s another of these that’s been met with a strong reception, with some calling it the studio’s best work yet (if not ever). Lastly, there was Taika Waititi’s Klara & the Sun, an adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s 2021 novel. Jenna Ortega plays the titular android bought as a companion model for a sick girl. Reviews haven’t been kind to this one, but if you saw it, maybe you liked it more than them. Let us know what you thought of that movie or any of the others above in the comments below. Want more io9 news? Check out the best movies and TV shows to stream this month and all the upcoming sci-fi, fantasy, and horror books that should be on your radar.