A beautiful and I think perhaps misunderstood film. This is not a Hollywood formula film. But to mistake that a child cannot enjoy this or relate to the film is unfortunate. My 9 year old daughter loved this film. This is not a film with a morale. It is a portrait of a child's emotions in a breathtaking format. My daughter giggled at the appropriate times. My daughter was quiet and thoughtful at appropriate times. The film is an accurate portrayal of a child in our modern world and all the feelings that get wrapped up into it. I'm not sure what folks were looking for. But it was sweet, heartbreaking and charming.… Expand

This movie is very heartfelt and had me balling my eyes out at the end. It is way too dark for children, but will take you back to your childhood. I absolutely love this movie. Let your emotions run wild during this film.

I never do these things, never comment or follow through with films after seeing them (unless with friends). Nevertheless, this movie was stunning. My vocabulary is limited and my mind is weary after seeing the 12 O'clock showing, but I will try to express how I feel. Every frame in this movie could be a photograph, every interaction between the characters is captured so strongly through the cinematography and the perfect setting (Australia). The Wild Things are all brilliantly played out and the pacing of the film is hurried (to accentuate the childlike impulsiveness of Max's mind). As a forewarning, this is not a film for children. It is a brutally dark and emotional film. The simple message from the story, some may have a problem with this, has been expanded into something incredibly large. It has become a tale about self reflection and allowing your mind to look at itself in order to learn what you are doing wrong. Max, the main character, is childish and immature. His anger is often untamed and he allows his sadness turn into aggression. The Wild Things are all branched out of his personality though and he has the opportunity to observe himself from an outside perspective. Its all so simply developed and displayed. There is not a moment in this movie that is misplaced or lacking of beauty. Enjoy it with an open mind.… Expand

I really cannot properly describe the way this movie made me feel. It's a film everyone needs to see, not expecting a blockbuster or a 'magical'/cliché Disney film, but rather an experience you haven't had since your best childhood moment. The melancholy lies in the fact that our childhood has been dead for decades, but we have our children to look forward to.

This truly was - A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. I've never left a theater so emotionally devastated in my life. Frame after gorgeously shot frame just aches with sadness in this beautiful meditation on what childhood is like growing up in a broken home. My hat is tipped and my hand is over my heart.

By far the greatest, most imaginative, and clever film adaptation of a children's book ever done.

Moving, subtle film.

As you can see from the scores, it would appear you either love or hate this movie. If you know what you are getting into before you see this movie, you will know it is not really a "children's" movie .. it is a movie ABOUT childhood. If you like movies that have the guts to go "outside the box" a little, you will appreciate this movie. It is an amazing accomplishment. Very powerful movie.

This film is pure, pure magic, and anyone who disagrees needs to think long and hard about what life was like when they were six and confined only by the limits of their imagination

Beautiful... A very symbolic movie. A true work of art.

Visually stunning and emotionally exhilarating! A true work of art not to be missed on the big screen.

I've seen it twice now and still can't get enough of it! One of the most multi-layered movies I have ever seen. I could eat it up, I love it so!

Finally after seeing so much meaningless action and drama at the cinema in the last year, there's a movie that I really FELT. And for this movie that so polarises cinema critics and movie-goers, you have to feel it, and I'm glad I did. Certain visual, certain snippets of dialogue were like little shots to the heart and for me that was the brilliant thing, the sense of identification with emotions we felt as children and indeed parents.… Expand

Best film of 09! It was emotional, deeply profound and very original. Great acting and directing.

This movie is a creative masterpiece.

Beautiful, heart wrenching, poignant. I can only assume that those who have chosen to bad mouth this wonderfully original piece of cinema have forgotten what it was like to be a child on the brink of losing your innocence and entering a more serious world. So you people can go see Transformers 2 for the 5th time and let the rest of us bask in the glow of a wonderful film that doesn't treat its audience like complete morons.… Expand

It's a beautiful film that explores the nature of childhood and imagination to brilliant effect. I think many of the negative reviews come from people too sadly far removed from their own childhoods.

Absolutely Fantastic! The film invites you in as part of the experience and is truly a classic escape from the everyday.

my wife and I are huge fans of the book from growing up and now our 4 year old loves the book. the 3 of us went to the movie today and could not be happier with it. it captures everything we loved about the book and doesn't try to hide anything. our 4 year old girl also enjoyed it, the things that were to old went over her head, but she was very able to follow along. the more intinse scene's she just held my hand but was fine. want to see it MANY more times and will recommend it to EVERYONE!… Expand

Excellent film. Truly moving. Great story, plot, moral. A must see for everybody!

Absolutely stunning movie, visually, tonally, thematically. I'm amazed that a film like this, that treats its audience, kids and adults alike, without a hint of condescension, could be made in today's market. It's a rich and beautiful piece of work, and bravo to Spike Jonze, Dave Eggers, Maurice Sendak, and all the cast and crew for making it happen.

Spike Jonze is 3 for 3 and has created the most perfect realization of Sendak's book that could have possibly been conceived. The negative reviews miss the point of Jonze's vision entirely. Dana Stevens (maybe you should have stuck with your job as an Avon lady?) says that it adds nothing to know the backstory of Max, his mom, and the Wild Things. If you don't get the importance of those backstories then it will be impossible to appreciate this movie. David Denby similarly says that he can picture little kids being confused as to why the wild things are so dysfunctional. It baffles me that professional film critics would fail to understand such a fundamental part of the story. How else did they expect Jonze to flesh out such a slight children's book? In my mind (and Sendak's apparentely) he has done it perfectly and I couldn't have been more pleased with or touched by the film. Simply perfect.… Expand

This is a beautiful movie that exceeded all of my expectations. Not for kids, but for thoughtful adults. For me it was magical.

The finest film of this year and one of the 10 best of the decade!!! My children, my wife, my mother, and I all cried in the closing credits of this film. Not because it was depressing but, because all of us really cared about Max, his mom, and the wild things that represent the subconscious of a child. This film is like Miyazaki for the mainstream American movie audience. I cannot say enough good things about the emotional complexity with which this film treated children. It was actually the most respectful look at at young children I have ever witnessed in all my many years of film going. However, the true amazement of this film is how it will play to your children. There will be many parents who treat there children like they are to young to understand and become emotionally involved. This is because many parents do not give their kids the credit they deserve. My daughter Jolie looked up at me in the movie (I actually had to tell her to whisper) to tell me how Carol (the leader of the Wild Things) felt and how closely that was to the way her and her sister act. She told me that sometimes she does mean things because she wants everything to be perfect and her sister sometimes doesn't want to hang out with her. She was sad for Carol and understood his sadness. My daughters are both 7. My son, who is for also spoke about these same feelings (with slightly less detail) to his sisters after the film. They also told me that they thought the end made them feel like Max was a good boy who realized how much he loved his mommy. Then they told their mommy how much they loved her and went outside to let their own little wild rumpus start. Kids are extremely intelligent and will do amazing things if parents do not hold them back out of fear. Knowledge is good, not the enemy. So, in conclusion, I believe that this film is for everyone from 4 to 94. It is a film that will reward it's viewers for being intelligent and emotionally involved. I loved this film so much I could eat it up! If there is a better film this year I can't wait to see it.… Expand

Wow. I was not ready for this. I have read the book to all three of my kids, and it has been part of the pantheon of great kids' books that don't pander to children, but rather engage their fears and anxieties, and thus establish a connection with them that is deep and longlasting. Cat in the Hat is another one of these books (child abandonment, anyone?), and it was butchered so egregiously at the movies that the thought that Hollywood was going to have a stab at Sendak was terrifying. Not to worry: Jonze and Eggers, with a mighty musical assist by Karen O. and some wild thing costumes that are wonderfully evocative, come up with an interpretation of the 338 word classic that feels right at every turn. There is an integration of all kinds of narrative and stylistic element that could easily have fallen apart completely (Cassavetes-style naturalism as a vehicle for a fantasy?), and yet they are held together by the integrity of the artists' vision. My 5 year-old daughter has been asking me questions about this movie incessantly since we saw the movie 24 hours ago. It is living with her in a way that no kids movie she has seen thus far has, and it lives with me to. The final, emotionally devastating but entirely earned final scenes are among the most truly moving moments I have had at the movies in years. I can't wait to see the movie again.… Expand

Patricia S., you are stupid. This film is beautiful. Movie popcorn with butter-like chemical sludge is gross.

A masterful film that perfectly captures the emotional confusion of being a kid. It's not a conventional kid's movie by any means, nor is it a fun family hug-fest. This is a deep, powerful, and emotional film and it's one of the best movies I've ever seen. You owe it to yourself to see this movie

Beautiful, intelligent, Genius.