Where the Wild Things Are

Name: Where the Wild Things Are
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Family
Released: October 16, 2009
Duration: 101 min
Rating: 71
Cast: Catherine O'Hara, Forest Whitaker, Max Records

2009

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 37 Critics

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 396 Ratings

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6.5

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6.5	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 396 Ratings

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WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

Movie Details & Credits

Warner Bros. Pictures | Release Date: October 16, 2009

Starring: Catherine O'Hara, Forest Whitaker, Max Records

Summary: The film tells the story of Max, a rambunctious and sensitive boy who feels misunderstood at home and escapes to where the Wild Things are. Max lands on an island where he meets mysterious and strange creatures whose emotions are as wild and unpredictable as their actions. The Wild Things desperately long for a leader to guide them, just asThe film tells the story of Max, a rambunctious and sensitive boy who feels misunderstood at home and escapes to where the Wild Things are. Max lands on an island where he meets mysterious and strange creatures whose emotions are as wild and unpredictable as their actions. The Wild Things desperately long for a leader to guide them, just as Max longs for a kingdom to rule. When Max is crowned king, he promises to create a place where everyone will be happy. Max soon finds, though, that ruling his kingdom is not so easy and his relationships there prove to be more complicated than he originally thought. (Warner Bros.)… Expand

Director: Spike Jonze

Genre(s): Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Family

Rating: PG

Runtime: 101 min

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Awards & Rankings

19	#19 Most Discussed Movie of 2009
41	#41 Most Shared Movie of 2009

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

Entertainment Weekly - Lisa Schwarzbaum

This is one of the year's best. To paraphrase the Wild Thing named KW, I could eat it up, I love it so. Read full review

100

Wall Street Journal - Joe Morgenstern

As wish-fulfillments go, this is a movie lover's dream. Read full review

The A.V. Club - Josh Modell

Spike Jonze has recently said in interviews that his chief goal ...was to try to capture the feeling of being 9. By that measure--by just about any measure, really--he succeeded wildly. Read full review

Philadelphia Inquirer - Steven Rea

A satisfyingly moody, melancholy, madcap live-action romp. Read full review

Baltimore Sun - Michael Sragow

Jonze lets the magic ebb away in a sorry mesh of strained relationships. Read full review

Village Voice - J. Hoberman

Wild Things isn't overlong, but it is underwhelming. Read full review

Salon - Stephanie Zacharek

Jonze's ideas, visual and otherwise, spill out in a faux-philosophical ramble that isn't nearly as deep as he thinks it is; at best, it's a scrambled tone poem. Even the look of the picture becomes tiresome after a while -- it starts to seem depressive and shaggy and tired. Read full review

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User Reviews

KieranM.

Oct 16, 2009

The absolute most meaningful movie I've ever seen. That's maybe because I feel like I can relate to Max. I've felt emotions that I've never felt before. Truly amazing.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

LucaT

Oct 20, 2009

Not a kids movie, but a movie for the kid in us all. Every line of dialogue was reminiscent of being a kid, if not word for word interactions I've had in my own past. Never once does it coddle. A true exploration of the ups and downs of our own emotions. Reminds me of what it was like Not a kids movie, but a movie for the kid in us all. Every line of dialogue was reminiscent of being a kid, if not word for word interactions I've had in my own past. Never once does it coddle. A true exploration of the ups and downs of our own emotions. Reminds me of what it was like to be a kid.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful

joe1975

Aug 17, 2012

A stunning, emotional , well acted and written movie. Although im glad many others give it a 10 i would disagree with any that state it not a childrens movie. Its for everyone that is or has ever been a child, and certainly some children ( just like the " adults " hear giving well thoughtA stunning, emotional , well acted and written movie. Although im glad many others give it a 10 i would disagree with any that state it not a childrens movie. Its for everyone that is or has ever been a child, and certainly some children ( just like the " adults " hear giving well thought out 0 reviews ) will find it boring but some will love it. It has a certain look like no other film . Everyone has differnt opinions on everything in life so dont listen to the ( incorrect ) bad review....know what your getting into and just watch it. U could be missing out on one of your new favs :)… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

Cinemassacre94

Mar 20, 2016

Where the Wild Things Are may be the first family film in recent memory to rely not on narrative or character development but on ideas and the director's vision. The result is an involving experience for all but the most fidgety children and an opportunity for parents to enjoy (rather thanWhere the Wild Things Are may be the first family film in recent memory to rely not on narrative or character development but on ideas and the director's vision. The result is an involving experience for all but the most fidgety children and an opportunity for parents to enjoy (rather than endure) a motion picture with their offspring. For director Spike Jonze, this represents a "pet project" and it turns out better than is often the case when a filmmaker is too close to the source material. There are problems, but they are mostly minor and do little to detract from Where the Wild Things Are's effectiveness as a 2009 answer to The Wizard of Oz.

The movie's plot is minimal; it's more about changes to Max's worldview than anything physical. Much of what happens on the island concentrates on his interactions with the various creatures he encounters there. It's here that things tend to meander as the dramatic momentum flags. In adapting Maurice Sendak's illustrated book, Jonze was forced to expand the canvas significantly, and this leads to some narrative and pacing issues during the midsection. Dorothy's journey along the Yellow Brick Road explores many of the same ideas with a tighter focus. Jonze also fashions a level of separation between Max and the audience, creating situations in which the intellectual resonance is stronger than the emotional one. One doesn't feel invested in Max's adventure in a way that would elevate this story to the high level achieved by the best children's story adaptation of recent years, A Bridge to Terabithia.

The central relationship on the island is between Max and the giant Carol (whose voice is provided by James Gandolfini). Carol, for lack of a better term, represents Max's soul: a need for friendship and unconditional love coupled with the capacity for destruction. By coming to terms with Carol, Max learns to understand himself and, most importantly, the trauma he has been causing his mother. Another important friendship develops between Max and the nurturing KW (voice of Lauren Ambrose), who represents the aspect of Max we see early in the movie when he curls up by his mother's feet.

The creature design is an incredible feat of imagination, evoking with near-flawless effectiveness the illustrations in Sendak's book. The Wild Things provide the impression of muppets and Big Bird (not surprising considering the involvement of Jim Henson's Creature Shop), but not in a cartoony way. They are the kinds of giant puppets that Sid and Marty Krofft would have used in H.R. Pufnstuf given the technology and budget. As "cute" as they sometimes appear, they are capable of generating an aura of menace. When Carol becomes enraged, there's nothing cuddly about him. The importance of getting the look of the Wild Things right should not be underestimated, since the film's success relies on this. Jonez and his team find the right balance between three-dimensional embodiments of the book's creatures and entities that work in the context of a live-action motion picture.

Where the Wild Things Are is Jonze's third feature length motion picture (he is probably still best known for his music videos). The sense of visual imagination one has come to expect based on Being John Malkovich and Adaptation (both written by Charlie Kaufman) is fulfilled here. This movie is nothing if not an embodiment of Jonze's flair and style. Most importantly, it fulfills the #1 criterion of any family film: it involves viewers of all ages on different levels. Children will react viscerally (both positively and negatively, with delight and fear) to the creatures, pre-teens and young teens will connect with Max and instinctively relate to his experiences, and adults will recognize the allegorical nature of the experience and enjoy it for what it is. This is probably the best family film since Disney's Up, and one of the most visually interesting pictures of the year. Whether or not it's a big success during its theatrical run, this is the kind of movie people will be watching for years to come at home.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

Tubie

Nov 2, 2010

If you are a fan of this book, or if your kids are just now becoming fans of the book, please do not let them watch this movie, it will ruin the book for them. This movie does no justice to it. The only way you could watch this movie and maybe enjoy it a bit is if you had nothing better toIf you are a fan of this book, or if your kids are just now becoming fans of the book, please do not let them watch this movie, it will ruin the book for them. This movie does no justice to it. The only way you could watch this movie and maybe enjoy it a bit is if you had nothing better to do and you rented this movie. Otherwise stay way.… Expand

2 of 5 users found this helpful23

Tony1984

Jul 9, 2018

Depressing and dour. A story about mental illness in the only child of a single mom. He escapes into a fantasy world to cope. Or at least that's what I think it was about. I was bored silly and gave up halfway through.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

SawyerC.

Oct 17, 2009

DEPRESSING! DARK! AWFUL!

0 of 2 users found this helpful

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