where the wild things are

Ever since the previews for Where the Wild Things Are came out, my husband and I have been very much looking forward to it.  Though a busy weekend last week prevented us from seeing it on opening day, we were able to catch it Friday evening — and were in no way disappointed.

The book, as anyone familiar with it knows, tells a simple story: Max, a boy in a wolf suit, gets in trouble with his mother, is sent to his room, and imagines his way to an island where he makes himself the King of the Wild Things.  The illustrations are classic and tell the story far more than the words do.

And this is exactly what the movie accomplishes that keeps its telling so true to the books — though the film has much more elaborate dialogue, the story could easily be told without any of it; the film’s beauty and strength comes from its cinematography.

The one thing I would definitively say is that this is not a children’s movie.  I think it’s certainly a movie that older children could appreciate, but it is dark and intense at times, with strong conflicts and heavy symbolism.  At its core, the film is about what it means to be in a family: the joy and the confusion, the love and the hurt.  It goes a little deeper than your average picture book adaptation, which in my opinion adds to the experience, but does mean it’s for a little older audience than the book itself. 

The complexity of the movie is such that I’m already eager to see it again (although will probably wait till it’s on DVD). I am absolutely sure there are pieces of it that I missed the first time around — and the wild rumpus was a lot of fun to watch, too.

~ by Molly on October 27, 2009.