journal features

movie review - Where The Wild Things Are

the journal of Michael Werneburg

twenty-eight years and a million words

Toronto, 2011.11.13

This is an ambitious book based on the children's book by the same name. Stretching a bed-time story into a feature length and retaining - well, anything - is quite a stretch but I think they nailed it with this one. The basic story of a young boy taking a flight of fantasy to an island populated with monsters is retained. The wild nature of those monsters, and a vague sense of underlying violence and menace in the monster's world is accentuated beautifully for the big screen. The boy does some growing up in this film, and it's good viewing.

Recommended.

rand()m quote

The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to such a pass that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him, and so loses all respect for himself and for others. And having no respect he ceases to love, and in order to occupy and distract himself without love he gives way to passions and coarse pleasures, and sinks to bestiality in his vices, all from continual lying to other men and to himself.

—Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov