Review of Where the Wild Things Are (2009) by Karl N — 22 Mar 2012

Innovative director Spike Jonze collaborates with celebrated author Maurice Sendak to bring one of the most beloved books of all time to the big screen in ?Where the Wild Things Are,? a classic story about childhood and the places we go to figure out the world we live in. The film tells the story of Max, a rambunctious and sensitive boy who feels misunderstood at home and escapes to where the Wild Things are. Max lands on an island where he meets mysterious and strange creatures whose emotions are as wild and unpredictable as their actions. The Wild Things desperately long for a leader to guide them, just as Max longs for a kingdom to rule. When Max is crowned king, he promises to create a place where everyone will be happy. Max soon finds, though, that ruling his kingdom is not so easy and his relationships there prove to be more complicated than he originally thought. --© Warner Bros.

Where the Wild Things Are is a movie about friendships and how to cope with yourself when everything around you seems to be going the exact opposite of what you want. The story of max is intriguing and at times quite hilarious. At first you think of him as a sort of loner whose only friend is a fence. You soon realize that this might be true as he gets upset over little things, and you really start to feel for Max. Once he tries to get his mother's attention, and she does not return it he flips out and runs away to an island. The whole premise of the story done very well, and everything just looks simply beautiful, from the monster design, to just the sheer look and visuals of the surroundings. There's also a very good soundtrack.

The acting in the movie was above par for sure. When I see a movie starring a little kid I can't be too sure of what to expect, but very surprisingly Max did a great job playing Max (yes they share the same name). The creatures voice acting was so incredible, I honestly didn't know if the monsters were real or fake. They looked simply amazing and genuinely real. The character development was very well done especially for a 95 minute movie (which seemed a bit longer than that). I cared about every single one of the monsters (or Wild Things) in their struggle to maintain a civilized society, then Max comes in and all the Wild Things think he's the King, but they soon realize he just can't be a king. Once the plot unravels and the Wild Things (and Max) show you their true colors of keeping friends close, and the hardships that comes with you really do feel for them and can relate in many ways.

This movie should not have been labeled as a childrens movie, as it was not. If I were a child and I saw this movie I would either pee myself in fear, or be bored because there wasn't enough action, although there is some great comic relief. Plus it is very dark, and slightly depressing. The sheer darkness would make me want to stray my kids (if I had them) away from the film and take them to something happier. While there are a lot of uplifting parts, that the kids will enjoy. There are also a lot of dark moment that will probably fly over their heads, but the older folks will find a little upsetting and a little depressing. The film itself is just candy to the eye though, every scene is filled with something lush that you just want to keep looking at. The Wild Things never get old to look at, due to their realism. Max is a completely likable kid, you don't find yourself saying "oh man what a stupid kid" you want to see how he changes and you want to see how the Wild Things deal with him. Each character has their own distinct personality, and each and every member of the audience can relate to atleast one of them. It just shows good creative film making.

Now don't get me wrong, there is a lot of good to come out of this movie, but there is also some bad. There are a lot of moments where you have no idea where certain people are, or who they are. There is also a lot of change in scenery in short amounts of time. For example Max will be in the forest for the little bit then all of a sudden he's in the desert, I wish there was some better transition to it. Also the two owls you see in the movie, you never hear from them again after they let them into the fortress. I wanted to know a little bit about them or where they went. Some development between the characters was a little awkward, I never knew if Carol liked K&W, or if he really didn't like her he never said anything about him liking her, and she said one distinct thing about her liking him. Why does Douglas bleed cocaine?

The soundtrack for this movie is something to brag about. It has a sort of indie style, but very catchy and very fitting to the movie. Why don't more movies have an awesome soundtrack like this? I don't know but they really should. No moment is really dull (for older people) with the amazingly catchy songs, and orchestra that plays in with this film. One song in particular which is the one used for the preview of the movie, it sounds as if Max is singing it, it's so amazing and really easy to get into, it fits perfectly in the spots they put it. For the intense parts, there wasn't some stupid music that everyone has heard before, but it's something original and fun that most people will appreciate.

Overall this is a must see for any fan of the book, or for anyone that just wants to get away for a little bit and have a good time at the theater. The story is good, and is easy to follow and will keep anyone over the age of ten pretty well into the movie. The movie is dark and at times kind of slow, but again it's okay for the more mature audiences, but not so good for the little ones. If you suffer from depression, I would not recommend seeing this, or if you have troubles with friends, same thing. The special effects, and amazing character design are probably the best part of the movie, the Wild Things just looked phenomenal, and the look of the movie is going to please anyone. Go see this movie with the family or someone who loves the book, because they will probably love the movie.