The visionaries behind Where the Wild Things Are have transformed a beloved children’s book into a gorgeous full-length movie about childhood, imagination and the difficulties of growing up. Check out Kidzworlds review of Where the Wild Things Are.
You’d think successfully transforming a beloved children’s book of less than 40 pages and almost no dialogue into a full-length movie would be impossible, but the visionaries behind the movie adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s classic children’s book, Where The Wild Things Are managed to do just that. Check out Kidzworld's review of the fantastic Where The Wild Things Are.
Mad Max
Max is a solitary kid by nature, but with his sister making new friends and his mom spending time with her new boyfriend, Max suddenly realizes he’s not the king of the world anymore. Feeling ignored by his mom, Max lashes out and in a frantic moment, he bites her. Max’s mom is surprised and hurt and Max tears from his house and into the nearby woods where he finds a boat and begins his imaginary journey to the island where the wild things are.
The scenarios on the monster’s island are eerily similar to the ones Max experienced back home—there’s a dirt clod fight that mirrors the snowball fight Max had with Carol’s friends, a monster named KW who actually looks a lot like his sister Claire, and even a monster named Carol who Max finds himself identifying with the most. Max understands Carol’s loneliness and stormy personality—both are prone to sudden outbursts of emotion brought on by the slightest misunderstanding, but such is the constitution of a wild thing.
The Bottom Line
Where The Wild Things manages to respect its source material while building something new of its own. The movie touches on the quiet terrors of childhood—sometimes subtly, like when Max spies his mom laughing with her boyfriend in the next room—sometimes not so subtly, like when Claire’s friends crush Max in his igloo. The wild things look so real you’ll want to reach out and hug them. The beasts were created using a mix of oversized costumes worn by performers and computer animation that controlled their constantly shifting facial expressions. Where The Wild Things is an artful, smart movie about imagination, childhood and the hard truths of growing up—don’t miss this one, it’s an instant classic.
Where The Wild Things Are Rating:
Related Stories:
