Where the Wild Things Are (2009)

Director:

Spike Jonze

Writers (WGA):

Spike Jonze (screenplay) &
Dave Eggers (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

16 October 2009 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Family | Fantasy

Tagline:

There's one in all of us.

Plot:

An adaptation of Maurice Sendak's classic children's story, where Max, a disobedient little boy sent to bed without his supper, creates his own world--a forest inhabited by ferocious wild creatures that crown Max as their ruler. |

Plot Keywords:

Crown | Forest | Creature | Sun | Tree

US Showtimes:

Pacific Culver Stadium 12

1:35pm | 4:10 | 7:00

(personalize)

Cast

Max Records	...	Max
Pepita Emmerichs	...	Claire
Max Pfeifer	...	Claire's Friend #1
Madeleine Greaves	...	Claire's Friend #2
Joshua Jay	...	Claire's Friend #3
Ryan Corr	...	Claire's Friend #4
Catherine Keener	...	Mom
Steve Mouzakis	...	Teacher
Mark Ruffalo	...	The Boyfriend
James Gandolfini	...	Carol (voice)
Paul Dano	...	Alexander (voice)
Catherine O'Hara	...	Judith (voice)
Forest Whitaker	...	Ira (voice)
Michael Berry Jr.	...	The Bull (voice)
Chris Cooper	...	Douglas (voice)

Also Known As:

Where the Wild Things Are: The IMAX Experience (USA) (IMAX version)

MPAA:

Rated PG for mild thematic elements, some adventure action and brief language.

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:PG (certificate #45516) | Finland:K-7 | Ireland:PG | Canada:G (British Columbia/Quebec) | Canada:PG (Alberta/Manitoba/Ontario) | Portugal:M/12 | Japan:G

Filming Locations:

Central City Studios, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Though their names are not mentioned in the book, Maurice Sendak named the Wild Things after his aunts and uncles: Bernard, Tzippeh, Aaron, Moishe, etc. The Wild Things have names in the film, but are not named after Sendak's aunts and uncles.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the scene in which Max is riding in the car in the pouring rain, at one point the camera pans to show the sun shining brightly directly above the window to his right.

Quotes:

Carol: [from trailer] It's going to be a place where only the things you want to happen, would happen.
Max: [from trailer] We could totally build a place like that!

Movie Connections:

Edited into "The Rotten Tomatoes Show: Duplicity/Knowing/I Love You, Man (#1.4)" (2009)

Where the Wild Things Are - Extraordinary

A beautiful, audacious, roughly-hewn motion picture (adjectives that are no doubt overused in describing the picture's modus operandi), Spike Jonze's adaptation Maurice Sendak's adored children's book "Where the Wild Things Are" taps into the innocent, volatile world of a 9 year old boy the way few mainstream feature films have. It is original, unique, melancholy, and because of this several mainstream critics (and even lucid critics like Salon's Stephanie Zacharek) have derided the film. "There's no story"; "kids won't like it"; "it's an adult film about children, not a children's film"; "it's boring"; "the pacing is slow"...

What? Why did it become such a crime to make an abstract art film within the spineless confines of the Hollywood system? Doesn't Spike Jonze get credit for personalizing, therefore, retaining a substantial amount of voracity while delving into one of the most revered children's books of the last fifty years? What the hell is wrong with that? I understand that some people just don't respond to the abstract, pseudo-verisimilitude of pretentious art films, but there's a stripped-down purity to this picture that cannot be denied. It's not pretentious, but emotional and honest.

It's bold, it takes chances...why is it being chastised in the media? How often do we get movies like "Where the Wild Things Are"? It should be celebrated, not snidely dismissed (Ex. Lou Lumenick, NY Post).