Monday, March 5, 2018

Delayed Reaction: Where The Wild Things Are

The Pitch: Let's make a kids movie that's probably a little too intense for kids.

The famous children's book is made into an entire movie that's very melancholy.

I'm getting lazy about finding new movies to. This is another rewatch. However, it is a film I didn't pay a lot of attention the first time I saw it and it still stuck with me. There's not a lot of the room in the market for kids films aimed at adults. Yes, technically, Spike Jonze insists that this film plays fine for children, but I don't care. This has been most fully embraced by adults. That's because it has a rare mix of pure imagination and existential sadness. The story is strikingly bare. Both times I saw the movie, I wasn't sure how it just filled 100 minutes. That's because the mechanics of the story are so simple. The emotions give it depth. This is my favorite James Gandolfini film performance (in a movie). There's something so raw about Carol. He wears every emotion he's feeling, which makes him a little scary. He's like the big dog who doesn't realize he isn't a puppy anymore. Max Records hasn't done a lot since this movie. I wonder if he's out of the business or just in school. I'm curious what he'd look like as an adult performer.

I'm not sure it's possible for me to properly explain how I feel about this film. I really like it. It's all feel though. It's a style and a tone that works. The animation of the creatures is unique. The story is understated, especially the end. I love the music. All these awkward parts work together really well.

Verdict (?): Strongly Recommend

No comments:

Post a Comment