A cherished bit of nostalgia is brought to cinematic life by director Spike Jonze in this family friendly film. Where the Wild Things Are is a full-length adaptation of the beloved 1963 children's book written and drawn by Maurice Sendak. The original picture book is 37 full-panel pages and the whole story consists of only 9 lines. Adapting the timeless classic into a 94 minute film is literally a stretch and others have attempted it but given up. (It has been adapted into an animated cartoon and a lite Opera, however.) Jonze and scriptwriter Dave Eggers manage to pull a workable script out of the brief book and it's effective for the most part but it’s not without its share of flaws.
The script is fleshed out to give the individual Wild Things distinctive personalities, rather than being generic beasts as in the book. The Wild Things are realized by a combination of costumes, puppetry and some digital enhancements. The creatures are essentially big Puff'N'Stuff-like costumes but the faces are digitally altered to match.
The movie gives young Max (Max Records) more motivation for his tantrum and escape to the world of Wild Things than did Sendak's little tale. In the film, Max is a lonely kid angered by his sister for not defending him when her friends destroy his snow fort and becomes further distraught when his mom (Catherine Keener) brings home a date (Mark Ruffalo). Before that we see some scenes of Max literally laying at his mother's feet, showing the almost Oedipal attachment he has to her (his father is mysteriously absent) which explains his extreme overreaction when Mom's date comes for dinner. Max goes wild and actually bites his mom. Confused, angry and a bit ashamed, Max runs away and comes across a boat which he impetuously hops aboard. The little boat sails away and Max is caught in a storm, ending up on the mysterious island of the titular Wild Things.
When we first see the Wild Things, one of them is having his own child-like tantrum. Karol (voiced by James Gandolfini) is angry that the wild she-thing he's sweet on, KW (Lauren Ambrose), has made some new friends and Karol is jealous. It seems like a kid's problem, as are most of the dilemmas in this film. Everything here is, after all, a reflection of Max's anguished psyche. Some of the other Wild Things include wise Douglas (Chris Cooper), doubting Judith (Catherine O'Hara), hole-digging Ira (Forrest Whittaker) and huge Bull (Michael Berry).
Although the Wild Things initially want to make a quick meal out of the little interloper, he convinces them that he has powers via some imaginative tall tales. The Wild Things are so impressed they decide to make Max their king, hoping that he'll fix all the things that are wrong on the island. "Can you keep all the sadness out?" one WT wonders. Max promises them a magic shield where no sadness can get in.
At first, the plan seems to work and the Wild Things enjoy their first night with their new king after he declares it rumpus time and everyone gets to run around like kids without supervision. They all fall sleep together in a big pile, with their king tucked safely in their furry midst.
This is basically where the book ends and Max decides to return home. Not so here. In the film, Max tries to be a good king to his people--and create a perfect place for himself--by building a fort where, as Karol puts it, "Nothing we don't want to happen, happens." But looking after the unruly lot is harder than Max suspected. He comes to understand how hard it is to be a parent. Good intentions are not always enough and there's no invisible shield to keep the sadness out. As his subjects become more discontented, Max starts to realize that he wants to be a kid again, not a king.
The film is a nice look into the mind of a child, much as Sendak's original classic was. Sendak said that he exorcised some personal demons by writing this story, and the film is a revisit to the world as the child might see it. Max is frustrated by the real world and ultimately retreats into a world of monsters where all his beastly friends act just as child-like as he does. It is very much centered on the concept of a child's sense of disappointment, both in the real world and in the inability to escape from it. In many ways, the film is a downer. There's no magic sadness shield and no place where only what we want to happen, happens. The film brings to life that sad moment of realization when we grow to realize that we have to face the world and we can't hide from it in our fantasies, as much as we might want to.
Although there are some charming moments, and the Wild Things are wonderful creations (very accurate to the great original artwork) the movie feels rather tedious at points. There are no real highlights and the film meanders along laboring its point. It’s not clear who the audience is for this film. Kids today, reared on more kinetic films, might find the leisurely pace boring. Older folk who have fond memories of reading "Where the Wild Things Are" while growing up will get a nice nostalgic thrill when the eponymous Wild Things first appear but will likely also find themselves losing interest as the story stretches beyond its literary conclusion. It’s a nice adaptation but it would have been better as a short rather than a full-length movie.
DVD Bonus Features
There are four behind the scenes short films. The best is the first one, where the director and crew try to get a dog to run and bark at the same time.
"Where The Wild Things Are" is on sale March 2, 2010 and is rated PG. Children & Family. Directed by Spike Jonze. Written by Spike Jonze and Dave Eggers. Starring Catherine Keener, Catherine OHara, Chris Cooper, Forest Whitaker, James Gandolfini, Mark Ruffalo.
