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New York, 4:17 AM
Sun Nov 8
22 posts in the last 24 hours
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10/19/09
As for me, I loved it. I liked it initially but as I've had time to process it over the weekend, I realized just how great it was. I was surprised by how sad it was (not a bad thing by the way! Really right on IMO and so affecting). The theme and tone seemed a bit mature but I didn't feel like that took away from the story or my daughter's ability to enjoy it. It captured the wonder and imagination from the book and I really couldn't have been more pleased. #wherethewildthingsare
10/19/09
Which is something I recommend to those of you who want to take smaller kids -- if they know the book well, take them to the website and introduce them to the characters. Then the movie is easier for them to follow and they can just focus on the story. #wherethewildthingsare
10/19/09
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10/19/09
I hated the soundtrack, though, and found it really distracting. #wherethewildthingsare
10/19/09
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10/19/09
I loved it through and through. The first bit was rather sad and there was a dip in the happy meter towards the end, but I think it ends rather happy. In his inner dialogue/12 months of therapy sessions crammed into one night/visit to the Wild Things' Island he comes to grip with his life no longer being able to be a constant Wild Rumpus and they can't all sleep in a big pile anymore, no matter how hard he tries. But in the end he realizes the people he loves, still love him and I can't imagine a better ending (bonus points for not dripping in more saccharine than a Kinkade painting.) #wherethewildthingsare
10/19/09
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10/19/09
The main complaints I heard? Why is Carol (Gandolfini) from Jersey? And that the vocal talent should have made their voices more "monsterry", whatever that means. It's such a personal book for a lot of people so I understand we all had a different interpretation of how they sounded. But I think it should matter what they actually said. And for me, they talked exactly how a kid would talk to himself so I had no problem getting past any familiarity. #wherethewildthingsare
10/19/09
10/19/09
Although I did end up comparing Carol and Tony Soprano in my head during the movie, and they're really not all that dissimilar. #wherethewildthingsare
10/19/09
10/19/09
@Sarah Dove: I know, right? #wherethewildthingsare
10/21/09
10/19/09
Now all I need is to start getting up at 430am and agreeing with Andy Rooney and I will be set. #wherethewildthingsare
10/19/09
I loved Where The Wild Things Are. I thought it really captured exactly what it feels like to be a kid. You're never sure whether everything is ok or not, why everyone acts the way they do, or if you are being good or bad. You want so badly to be loved and protected by these big, intimidating creatures (adults) who you don't understand, but would do anything for.
Even when KW eats Max to protect him, there's the danger that he won't be able to get out. And it's hard for him to breathe. But she pulls him back out, and it's ok again.
I had enormous, elaborate dreams, and plans for ways to make everything magical and perfect, just like Max and Carol. I loved the scene where they're walking together and Max explains that the sun is going to die. "But look at me! I'm Big! And you're a king! Why should guys like us worry about something as tiny as the sun?" It's like how Max says he is a king, and he acts like a king, so he becomes a king, and he has a certain kind of power. There's a lot of power in belief. It can make everything better and keep the sadness away. But then there are moments when you stop believing. I know my life is still made up of that kind of back and forth. Maybe as we grow up, most people get better at choosing what they believe and sticking to it, but it's not easy.
I don't think this is a film you take a kid to see because it will entertain them. I think kids should see it because it says something very true, and leaves you with a real appreciation for that truth. We're all scared. We're all wild. But we have to keep loving each other. #wherethewildthingsare
10/19/09
As a lover of this book as a child, I was very happy to see Spike's interpretation of it was, as I felt it, so close to the book.
Lauren Ambrose as KW, wonderful.
Sure, the ending is a bit sacharine sweet. Overall, a lovely film, and I truly felt the musical score, and Karen O's voice added to it.
(If you are in NY - go to the Morgan Library for the exhibit of Sendak notes & drawings of the book). #wherethewildthingsare
10/19/09
10/19/09
As for the voices, I actually loved James Gandolfini and loved the CGI on the wild things faces (tasteful, felt like I was watching real animals, not cartoons). The voice that almost ruined it for me was Catherine O'Hara. Usually I like her, but it was too much. #wherethewildthingsare
10/19/09
10/19/09
My husband agrees with you though- he fell asleep. #wherethewildthingsare
10/19/09
The message really dire and depressing, not something I'd recommend to a ten year old. It was all about childhood dying, something, I feel, doesn't have place in a kids movie. This movie is a prime example of throwing the source material aside for the sake of appealing to an older crowd. The messages weren't really for children so much as young adults who romanticize and lament their lost childhood because of mommy and daddy's divorce.
Also, the monsters came off more as annoying adults than actual 'wild things'. And the heavy handed 'are some of us better than others?' dialogue was so misplaced. #wherethewildthingsare
10/19/09
10/19/09