Most kids have vivid imaginations.
Some escape to a fantasyland when the real world is giving them a tough time.
In this imaginative world, children may never want to return. They feel welcome, happy and free.
But every world — real or fictional — has its ups and downs, and a child will soon discover how to achieve happiness in the real world after a brief visit to the fictional one.
Maurice Sendak’s classic children’s tale, “Where the Wild Things Are,” has finally received the live-action film treatment.
“Max,” played by Max Records, is a disobedient brat who cannot get along with his sister “Claire,” played by Pepita Emmerichs, and her friends. Max also can’t get his single mother, played by Catherine Keener, away from her job or new boyfriend to play with him.
One evening before supper, Max and his mom get into an argument, causing him to run away from home.
He sets sail on a boat to an unknown destination.
When Max arrives at a mysterious island, he sees many different creatures running around, including a ram, a parrot and a cat. He approaches them with caution.
The creatures are a little uncertain of what to think of Max at first, but soon adapt and make him their king.
As their human king, Max rules the critter kingdom, ordering the animals around in a fun, light-hearted way.
Max feels welcome and loved in the land, something he wanted but never got in the real world.
Directed by Spike Jonze of “Adaptation.” and “Being John Malkovich,” the film is rated PG, but may be a little frightening for children in some scenes.
The creatures are creations of the Jim Henson Creature Shop, meaning it is people in suits, instead of dopey, computer-generated animations. This makes them believable and life-like. The one special effect used allows them to talk and express real emotion in their facial features.
The voices of the creatures include actors James Gandolfini of “The Sopranos,” Forest Whitaker of “The Last King of Scotland” and Paul Dano of “There Will Be Blood.”
The critters are fun and lovable, but they also show they have human feelings just like Max.
The cast of voice actors is fantastic, with each actor or actress vocally fitting the creatures on screen.
Gandolfini stands out among the monster crowd as “Carol,” a big, furry cat with horns who had dreams to build a community for the creatures to live in. The project began as a team effort before the others lost interest, leaving Carol unhappy and feeling as though no one listens to him.
Gandolfini’s commanding voice deeply reflects the unhappy feelings Carol has when he feels left out of the group.
The cinematography is beautiful and captivatingly rich.
Cameraman Lance Acord, who also shot “Lost in Translation,” captures the greens of the forest and the beautiful emptiness of the sandy deserts with great skill.
Jonze has crafted an incredible film, which adults and children can enjoy — laughing during the humorous moments and crying during the sad ones.
David Wangberg can be reached at
dwangberg1@hotmail.com
2 comments
This story is well written, David, but I really feel like you missed the point of both the story and the live action version that Spike Jonze create.Reading the children's book, even once, makes it apparent that Sendak's story is one of a slightly darker edge, of humans looking in vain for some sort of patriarch (or matriarch) and a structured guidance -- besides the obvious realization by Max through the Wild Things that he should behave differently to get along better with his family.This movie is not one to scratch just the surface of, so I'd be wary of that when you're doing movie reviews in the future. "Laughing during the humorous moments and crying during the sad ones" just doesn't seem to do a deeper film justice.