Review: Where the Wild Things Are

Rating: 3 out of 5

As movies go this one is definitely a cut above the rest. The writing and cinematography are some of the best I've seen this year. And the special effects mixed with puppetry gives me the same emotions as I had when I was a child watching anything Jim Henson. You stare at wonderment at these Wild Things. They feel so real that you want to meet them and romp around with them just like Max.

There were many things in the movie that would make me sit and stare, unable to blink because of the beauty. Especially the parts when it is a desert landscape with the sun either rising or setting. Speaking of the setting, Spike Jones has crafted something that most directors couldn't dream of doing. It's the feeling of childlike wonder and also comfortability in the setting.

This is the central theme in the movie. You can almost feel like you have your childlike imagination back. When you were a kid the small woods by your house was a deep forest to you, a rock pile was a mountain. Spike Jones takes you back to that same feeling because you are looking through Max's eyes. You can literary see his imagination in play. When that hits you at certain points you can't help but smile. You feel like a kid again.

The writing is spectacular. It doesn't dumb things down to a childlike level. It feels like a real child talking when Max speaks. There is a part when he first meets the Wild Things and he begins to tell tall tales about himself. I've heard kids do this. I taught preschool for a time and kids come up with the craziest stories, all to impress you. Max does the same. The Wild Things are childlike too, but also adult. I didn't understand this as much. Sometimes they talk to Max on his level, sometimes above, and sometimes below. It doesn't seem as fleshed out.

Now I bet your saying, why do you say all of these great things and give it three stars. Because I didn't leave going "This is one of the best movies I've seen." For me, PERSONALLY, I didn't fully get it. It was funny at times, sad at times, but never really picked what it was about. It was too random maybe for my tastes. Even though when you meet KW's friends, that was my kind of random! The movie in it's entirety didn't gel for me. I also had this feeling that I was missing something. Like I wasn't getting small things that would make sense of it all. Again though as a movie it is very good. I didn't walk out going "GOD IT SUCKED!". I walked out not understanding the full meaning.

Also, I hated Max. I'm not a big fan of kids in general, especially the older than 8 range. So I found Max as a character annoying and selfish. The actor though was great, his timing and emotional portrayal was incredible. I think he played him exactly like Max was written. The problem however, I was never in Max's corner. He was a brat who was acting out because his Mom wouldn't play with him ALL THE TIME. And I didn't find the Mom to be that horrible. She was stressed and trying to do the single mom thing. Did she mess up, yes. The whole boyfriend thing was proof of that. But she was never horrible to Max, even when he destroys a room. I understood the whole "escape to the Wild Things", but it was hard to really get invested when I didn't like the main character.

Now I say this in closing, if you liked the books you will like this movie. I sat by my best friend and she LOVED it. She got the thing that I did not. So this can be fully enjoyed by someone, I saw the proof. I have never read the book, so I think that had something to do with the whole not fully understanding the movie. The very last thing I will say is that I loved KW...alot. She was the best thing about the movie for me, cause she was the most well rounded of all the characters. I say see the movie and give it a try, you may like it alot, or like me, just a little.