WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE [2009] review
October 24, 2009 · Print This Article
Why? It is the one question I thought the most while watching the weirdly mesmerizing and somewhat off-putting emotional exploration that is the 2009 film WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE. As most kids of my generation, I can recall holding that oddly shaped hardcover book. The illustrations almost seems to shuffle in your eye with a natural twitch. The movie version did not replicate that twitch, but it did very successfully bring the monsters to life with amazing puppetry and only the necessary CGI.
I could not remember any details from the book I read no doubt 25+ years ago. I had heard that the movie version was definitely not for kids. That is a very accurate statement. This movie is very dark, perhaps one of the most casually dark movies I’ve ever seen.
Max is a boy of type known well on the silver screen–no father figure, ignored by a sibling, mother too busy to care enough regardless of how willing she may or may not be to actually care. The boy reacts emotionally and violently. From this a trip deep into childhood imagination springs.
Max sails into a world of true monsters, the bass echoing in the movie theater, as they smashed things or walked, tangibly indicated their power to the audience. They are not above threats of devouring Max. Yet they are not fierce, but rather, just wild. Like Max they have burgeoning adult feelings wrapped in child’s minds.
The monsters are sad, depressed, and lonely. Seven, apparently, is not enough. They make Max their king to bring happiness into their existences.
As I mentioned in the introduction, I was constantly thinking “why” during the movie. Why are the monsters in need of such cheering up? They seem to have no enemies or hardships. Two of them are paired up and in love. Only one monster is seemingly neglected. Another monster is, however, the victim of unrequited love. Maybe some answers to these why’s get answered, but never overtly.
KW is wryling developed as the character of greatest emotional appeal to the audience. She is the one I find myself being able to identify with. Yet this movie is not straight forward. Her new best friends threw me entirely for a loop.
This is a movie that is just off kilter in a very artistic way. I guess that is the director, Spike Jonze’s, trademark.
As soon as I came home I ordered the hardcover version of the book from Amazon.
I should maybe now order the soundtrack, it was fresh, appropriate, and kept me the emotional flow of the movie lingering throughout the credits.
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Yes,it was not for children,kind of sad movie.
The feeling isolated and loneliness make people depressed and sad, then try to change something to be happier.
I can easily understand that I am now.
They wanted change their life, so Max did ?…..I guess.
I don’t know the original book.I wanna read it.
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