Where the Wild Things Are represents an important part of childhood for people of my generation. The Maurice Sendak book, is something many of us grew up with. When people in my age group first heard a big screen adaptation was in the works a couple of years ago, we were excited but also cautiously optimistic that the movie would be a proper adaptation of the book.
The signing of veteran music video director Spike Jonze to headline the project was certainly a positive sign, but a year-long delay in the release of the movie due to Warner Brothers studio intervention started to raise some red flags as to whether it would remain true to Maurice Sendak’s vision.
My fears were assuaged however, after finally getting a chance to see Where the Wild Things Are. Director Spike Jonze and screenwriter Dave Eggers do a fantastic job of stretching a 10 page children’s book into a movie that doesn’t distort the message of the story, but still gives audiences something fresh.
Much like in the book, the main character Max (Max Records) is a mischievous child, who causes trouble for his mother. The film does an excellent job of fleshing Max out as a character though, showing us that underneath his wild side, is a dreamer with a colorful imagination looking for the love and attention he feels his mother and sister are neglecting to give him.
Max’s mother is distracted from spending time with her son by her career and her new love interest while his older sister is more interested in her adolescent friends than paying attention to her younger brother. It’s Max’s frustration with his family that leads him to act out violently and run away.
After Max escapes he finds a boat, which carries him to his own vivid imaginary land. He travels a great distance by sea, braving a violent storm to find the island where he discovers a group of large wild creatures.
The wild creatures decide that Max might be a tasty morsel and they decide to eat him, but thinking quickly Max convinces them he is a powerful king, capable of killing anyone who makes him angry. Cowering in fear at his strong words, the creatures decide to name him king of the island. As the newly appointed king, Max leads them on a series of adventures: playing games, building a fort, and traveling to distant parts of the island.
Visually the film is stunning; it only integrates handheld camera shots in the appropriate moments to take viewers into the action. Jim Henson’s Creature Shop makes the monsters of the movie look incredibly convincing, and the composite animation of their faces matches up well.
One of the most fascinating aspects of the creatures on the island, is that they all seem to represent elements of Max’s personality. Voiced by a number of talented actors including Chris Cooper, Forest Whitaker, Catherine O’Hara, and Paul Dano, they undergo the same emotions and conflicts that he experiences. Carol (James Gandolfini), the wild thing Max forms the closest bond with, seems to embody the most of Max’s own characteristics. Craving the attention and love of KW, like Max craves the attention of his sister, Carol is jealous of anyone who steals KW away from him.
Like Max, Carol is very quick to anger, often allowing his emotions to get in the way of his better judgment. Max and Carol seem to follow a similar character arch over the course of the film, realizing the error of their ways towards the end. Juxtaposing Max’s struggles with that of the creatures serves as a way for the writers to make a point: we are all wild things. All of the wild emotions, especially jealousy, exist inside each and every one of us. While they are natural emotions, it’s how we handle them that truly shows our character.
When the time comes for Max to leave his new friends and return home, the film comes to a close without being overly resolute. It allows for some ambiguity, in terms of Max’s relationship with his mother and his sister, not wrapping things up nice and neatly. This grounds the story and makes it much more real, since often times in life people are not quick to change who they are.
Jonze makes use of his former girlfriend Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, to provide the indie soundtrack for Where the Wild Things Are. Personally I felt the soundtrack had a very pretentious feel as a result. Even though the film was a tight 110 minutes, at points I felt the pacing was slow, but I think a large part of that came from trying to stretch the brief source material of Sendak’s book. Overall I found “Where the Wild Things Are” to be an enjoyable adaptation of the popular children’s book, that left audiences with a message without being overly preachy.