Review: Where the Wild Things Are?

The jury is still out on whether Spike Jonze’s live-action adaptation of Where the Wild Things Are is a movie you’ll want to take your little wild things to this weekend.

But from the description alone, the movie may have some issues you and your family should be aware of:

“The film follows the imaginary adventures of a young boy named Max, who is angry when his mother, Connie (Catherine Keener), invites her boyfriend (Mark Ruffalo) over. After he causes one mischievous antic after another, his mother tries to send him to his room. He ends up biting her and running away, feeling angry and unloved. He runs outside at night, through a fence until he stumbles upon a boat. He sails away to an island inhabited by seven imaginary monsters called the Wild Things, where they crown him as the ruler.”

Apparently, in order to expand a ten-sentence children’s story into a 111-paged screenplay, some changes to the original tale were made.

Based on the movie trailer, the PG rating, and Jonze’s edgy reputation, parents should expect the film (which promises to have mild language, peril, and dark themes) to be a better fit for older kids. This isn’t aimed at the kindergarten set — no matter how well versed they may be in Max’s journey.

Visit CommonSenseMedia.org for a common sense approach to movie reviews for this and other films.

Click HERE for related Palmetto Family blog entry: “My Little Wild Things.”