courtesy impawards.com

SYNOPSIS
“Let the wild rumpus start!” Nine-year-old Max runs away from home and sails across the sea to become king of the land Where the Wild Things Are. King Max rules a wondrous realm of gigantic fuzzy monsters — but being king may not be as carefree as it looks! Source: Where The Wild Things Are.

REVIEW
I had never read the book as a child, therefore, I went to the library and read it prior to viewing the movie. I had been kind of eager to see this movie at the theaters, but for one reason or another missed it. As such, I finally remembered to rent it.

During my first viewing, I fell asleep in the middle of the movie, woke to watch the end and went to bed very dissatisfied. I felt like I had just watched the most depression profile of an incorrigible young man ever and the explanation on how he came about was insufficient. Then I started questioning myself: Did he really go to the place where the wild things are? Was it imagined? How long was he gone? Would a teacher really offer such a pessimistic view of the sun to a class of elementary school children?

This morning I decided to watch it again, to see if what I had missed made a difference to my viewing opinion. I can’t honestly say it did, but the sudden influx of drama that I received this morning, help me to form a better understanding of this movie’s subliminal message — it’s not easy being a kid, and no matter how old we get/are, we all act like children at one point or another.

I think this movie spends way too much time on a deeper level, which is the reason for my dislike of it. I can’t imagine any child liking this movie. My experience with children is that they are straightforward and open; they could care less about the inner workings of the mind.

I did like the voices of the monsters and understood that they were all different aspects of Max’s subconsciousness, but the reason KW had separated herself from the group was totally unclear to me.

Great movie for deep people.