Troy the Corpse Killer's Review of "Where the Wild Things Are"

Finally, the Wild Things have arrived! This movie has been in development hell for at least ten years. Even as early as the early '80s this movie has been desperately trying to make it to the big screen. I mean the earliest trailer for it played in front of "Jim Carrey's How the Grinch Stole Christmas", which was 9-10 years ago. But, finally it has made celluloid reality. The only question is, was it worth the extra-long wait?

Young Max (Max Records) is playing in the winter snow and living in his imagination when he disturbs his sister and her teenage friends which then ultimately leads to her friends destroying his igloo. Max cries and destroys his sister's room. Meanwhile, his mom Connie (Catherine Keener) is neglecting Max for her boyfriend (Mark Ruffalo). When dinnertime comes, Max throws a tantrum and storms off into the woods. He finds a sailboat which then leads him to an island full of monsters called the Wild Things. The monsters include Carol (James Gandolfini), Ira (Forest Whitaker), KW (Lauren Ambrose), Judith (Catherine O'Hara), Douglas (Chris Cooper), Alexander (Paul Dano), and The Bull (Michael Berry Jr). He then convinces the Wild Things that he is their king. What follows is kind of a cathartic path on the way from turning from a child into a young man.

Now I`m going to dive into the only problem I had with this film: the audience. That`s right, the audience was one of the worst audiences I`ve ever been a part of in my life. To the right of me, there was this 5-year-old kid who kept asking his mother questions. But then again, I was that kid ten years ago, he was the least of my problem. The people behind me were mentally handicapped people. They were least kind you`d want to see a movie with to. Everytime any big scene was happening or whenever there was a dramatic moment, or even when the Wild Things so much as opened their mouths, they screamed, mumbled, and babbled like retarded people would have. I have nothing against mentally handicapped people but they annoyed the sh*t out of me and distracted me from all the great little moments of the film. They were sitting right behind me and I so much wanted to say ``Shut the hell up!``. The only thing that stopped me was #1: they were mentally handicapped and I did not want to come off as an asshole and #2: I am not gonna cause attention to myself that way. Still that was my only complaint with the film.

Now, the film by itself is really great. In fact it is one of the better films that have come out this year. Regarding what I heard from word of mouth, I was kind of afraid of this movie in it being a borefest like C. Robert Cargill referred it to. But, I went to see it anyway and I am glad that I saw it. I just feel that the marketing campaign was not dealt with very well. I mean you watch the trailer and you expect it to be the ultimate childrens film and it is not. Well, it is in many ways but it has lots of adult ideas going on in the film. Also Harry Knowles of Aint It Cool News had the balls to say that this was a better childrens film than E.T. While, I love this film a lot, I disagree on various levels on that comparison. E.T. is a brilliant movie that anybody can love and cherish. While this movie, kids can enjoy it or even really like it, but I feel that only older kids like 13-14 and up to adults will be able to really love it. It is very much a childrens film for adults, if that makes sense. I mean, it deals with issues like the end of mankind, self-reflection and growing up and maturity. It is a very dark film when it comes to tone and style, I mean the forests and even some of the monsters look terrifying sometimes.

Now, the kid who played Max, Max Records was absolutely brilliant. I mean this kid carries the entire film 85% of the time. He is really great in this role. Also, all the voiceover actors like Forest Whitaker, Chris Cooper, Paul Dano, and James Gandolfini are just perfect for each of their monsters that they play. I just could not help but feel that The Bull was inspired by Silent Bob of the Jay and Silent Bob movies. He has absolutely nothing to say until the very end, and when he does open his mouth, it is very much sacred words what he says and it is great! What I also love is that each of these monsters are very much a darker reflection of Max himself. And it is where he realizes how much of a little sh*t he is to his family back home. Still, if you have like a sibling age 6 and under, you may not want to bring them to this movie for obvious reasons. Also, I found that I really identified with Max, when I was 5-10, I was Max. I was that weird kid who lived in his imagination all the time. I just find it is about time there is a character I can relate my child self to.

Still, the Wild Things are the best thing about this movie. They are stunning! It surprises me that they are like half-CGI, half-animatronics. They seem like the aliens in District 9, they seemed so photorealistic. Plus, I also found this movie to almost be a modern version of The Wizard of Oz in a way. But, for me it totally works, because I mean come on, The Wizard of Oz is one of the greatest movies ever made and it is a landmark in film history. In conclusion, though, it is beautifully acted, shot, composed, and just everything about it works for me. It took me back to what being a little kid meant and it was amazing. I think director Spike Jonze has incredible vision and a great way of storytelling. It is dark, complex, and much more than just a childrens film. I think I smell for some Oscar nods in the air: mostly for Set Design, Visual Effects, Cinematography, maybe Original Score, and some other technical categories. The wait has been long and where are the wild things are, you may ask, there are here right now. Highly recommended for anyone who was once a kid.

Rating: High Full Price!!