Movie Review – Where the Wild Things Are

October 27, 2009 chaos Leave a comment

Where the Wild Things Are

Directed by Spike Jonze

Starring Max Records, Catherine Keener, Mark Ruffalo, and the voices of James Gandolfini, Paul Dano, Catherine O’Hara, Forest Whitaker, Chris Cooper, and Lauren Ambrose.

Backstory

As I’ve been mentioning in my podcast leading up to this film, Where the Wild Things Are seems to have this massive cult following. I’ve run into people for the longest time who are all like, “IT CHANGED MY 7-YEAR OLD LIFE!” I read it when I was seven years old. I liked it, but it didn’t change my life. However, my movie gossip sites have been bubbling over for the past six years of the long and trouble journey this film adaptation took. Hell, six years ago, when Spike Jonze was first signed on to direct, I told one of those people whose life was changed by this book that the guy who did Being John Malkovich was bringing it to the big screen. Her eyes went wide and she said, “That movie’s going to be insane.” Well, here we are, it’s finally in theatres, it’s the most hyped movie of the autumn, and my curiosity got the better of me.

Plot

Max is a fairly typical boy. He likes to build snow forts. He likes to dress up and pretend he’s a monster. But he’s also got issues. He’s a got a psycho teacher who rants about the sun going out some day, he comes from a broken home, and he’s feeling neglected by his mother. Then, one night, he throws a tantrum, bites his mom, and runs off into the woods. He soon finds himself on an island populated by big furry monsters…the Wild Things. But see, these monsters all have problems too. They’re neurotic, they’re worrisome, and some of them you just don’t want to make angry. By hanging out with these monsters, Max is on a path to learn more about himself and the world around him.

What I Liked

The Wild Things are animatronics courtesy of Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, giving the film a really nice, old-school, 1980s-style fantasy film kind of vibe. The visuals are just stunning. The acting, both real and voice, is also bang on.

What I Didn’t Like

Umm…nothing really happens in this film. I know parents usually tell kids to “use their words” and talk through their problems, and that’s the approach that Max and the Wild Things take. It’s just very talky for a kids film.

Final Assessment

I’ve never understood the mad love for the book, and I don’t understand the mad love for the film.

2.5 Nibs

Movie Reviews

Movie Review – Astro Boy

October 27, 2009 chaos Leave a comment

Astro Boy

Directed by David Bowers

Starring the voices of Freddie Highmore, Bill Nighy, Donald Sutherland, Eugene Levy, Kristen Bell, Nathan Lane, Charlize Theron, and Nicholas Cage as Dr. Tenma.

Backstory

I was really jazzed for Astro Boy. I loved the cartoon when I was a kid. The end credit song always brought a tinge of sadness, as it meant it was 8AM and time to go to school. I’ve been reading about a possible movie version for as long as I’ve been following movie news online. And when the trailers came out, and the film looked like nothing special, I was still cautiously optimistic, as Astro was being brought to the big screen by Imagi Studios, the new upstart animation studio that brought us the computer animated Ninja Turtles. Their first time at-bat was a home run, so I was ready to see Imagi make it 2 for 2.

Plot

In the future, the utopian Metro City floats above the clouds of Earth. This technologically advance city is a virtual paradise, where robots wait on humans hand and foot. The only problem is it’s governed by the warmongering President Stone. Stone has had his top minds in the ministry of science develop the Peacemaker, one of the most advanced robotic soldiers ever created. However, there is an accident when they try out the Peacemaker, and Toby, the son of science minister Dr. Tenma, is driven mad with grief. In his grief, Tenma tries to bring his son back to life by building a robot duplicate of his son. But, this robot soon becomes simply a painful reminder of what Tenma has lost, and Tenma casts this robot boy into the world. Adopting the new name Astro, the robot boy sets out to Earth to find his place. However, Tenma built this robot with some highly advanced weaponry, and President Stone will stop at nothing until Astro is found and made a soldier. Where does Astro’s destiny lie?

What I Liked

The voice acting is really top-notch. Everyone really did a good job with their characters. I really liked the score, too. The composer is John Ottman, and his music was highly reminiscent of his Fantastic Four score. There’s a lot more jokes in it than the Astro Boy I remember, but some of the gags are quite clever.

What I Didn’t Like

This movie borrowed quite a bit from other science-fiction movies as of late that dealt with robots. I could see WALL-E and A.I.‘s fingerprints all over it. Astro finding his place in the world and the racism he encounters could have made for a much more introspective movie, but most of it seems to be glossed over. The film is also a lot more jokey and tongue-in-cheek than what I remember of the cartoon. The animation isn’t as nearly technically perfect as Pixar. And the ending was just a little too…Powerpuff Girls.