Where the Wild Things Are

We’ve seen book to movie adaptations all the time in Hollywood, some good (“Lord of the Rings”), some not so good (“The Cat in the Hat”). The only thing about “Where the Wild Things Are” is that it isn’t a 500+ page book where you have to figure out what should be cut, no, “Where the Wild Things Are” consists of 48 pages (less than half of those containing writing) so the plot for the movie had to be tweaked and twisted, for this I was rather impressed with the story that the writers came up with (Spike Jonze and Dave Eggers; Jonze also directed). In the book Max, a single kid (as far as we know) puts on his wolf outfit and raises a ruckus, his mom then sends him to his room with no supper. From his room a forest grows until his entire room is engulfed and a personal boat for him appears where he travels for years on the sea to the land of the wild things. There he uses his magic trick by staring at them in their eyes and telling them, “BE STILL” he is then crowned king. His first decree is for a rumpus to occur and after that he decides he misses home and those who love him. He leaves for food and love from his mother.

The movie takes some liberties as it goes into more detail as to how he gets to the land of the wild things, the stories of the wild things and they’re background (more in depth; as they have names in the movie and are just known as the wild things in the book). Along with this more of the landscape is shown theatrically and most importantly what Max does with the Wild Things once in control is expanded in a different but in a fun way; much in a way you would assume a boy of Max’s age would want to do with the power he has. The cinematography was a beautiful throughout the vast regions of the world of the Wild Things, from the desert to the forest the world that Max explores and encounters throughout his stay making it one of the strongest aspects of this feature. The vibe and way he interacts with the Wild Things is perfect; the main positive aspect of this is that I felt the main theme of the book coming through in the movie as well. But the movie wasn’t all-good I found the movie overly depressing to be classified a “family/children’s movie” (this fact has been much discussed), the movie was very dark as Max doesn’t live a very happy home life and in the land of the Wild Things I found it over all very strange the way some of the movie was carried out, such as how the movie transitioned from one part of the plot to the next (granted they were going off little from the book) and the way the movie ends doesn’t give closer to how the family ends up. I left the movie theater very confused as to whether or not I enjoyed this movie, I knew for sure it wasn’t what I was expecting when I entered the theater but that was okay. Over all I thought the movies positives out weighed the negatives as a whole and was fairly entertained. But definitely would not recommend taking young children to view this or anyone looking to see a mainstream movie. This movie is worth a matinee viewing and maybe full price weekend viewing if you’re interested enough, but don’t expect too much out of this movie.






Over all Rating: 7 out of 10

Zombieland

Zombie apocalypse, human population plummeting and undead rising, the basic premise of every zombie movie not a big surprise “Zombieland” followed suit as well. But unlike other zombie movies before it, “Zombieland” takes a more humorous look 4 people trying to make it through everyday life, enjoying the little things while they’re at it. This action-comedy contains the talents of Tallahassee-Woody Harrelson (“Cheers”), Columbus-Jesse Eisenburg (“Adventureland”), Wichita-Emma Stone (“Superbad”) and Little Rock-Abigail Breslin (“Little Miss Sunshine”)-each being named after where they came from. Tallahassee and Columbus start off in Texas, traveling together. The duo, of Harrelson and Eisenburg, work very well together playing off each other’s personality and balancing the other out perfectly. Harrelson’s character being the crazy shoot ‘em up and Eisenburg the more apprehensive but can still, barely, get the job done way of surviving, added to a decent dose of clumsiness. Columbus working to get back home to see if his family has survived and Tallahassee who is just in search of an ever-elusive Twinkie. They are later joined by Wichita and Little Rock who are trying to make their way to a theme park in Cali. The four-some fight, disagree, laugh, travel and most importantly kill zombies together, all while enjoying the little things.
The comedy that runs throughout the movie is something that has not yet been seen mixed with zombies using American comedy (the closest thing to it being “Shaun of the Dead” which uses British humor). The actors and the characters that they play all tie in very well together allowing for humorous interaction and a revival of Harrelson’s career, showing the movie world that he still has funny left in him. Along with rising comedy younglings Eisenburg and Stone have weird interaction with the gender roles almost flipped in the way that they act. Judging from previews you wouldn’t think much of this movie but it’s definitely worth a watch and I guarantee that going into this movie with an open mind you will find yourself laughing, remember you got to enjoy the little things.



Over all rating: 7 out of 10

3Deeeeeeeeeeeeee

I’m sure we’ve all seen Toy Story (1 and 2), Pixar’s first full-length megahit movie. Well Buzz, Woody and the gang are all back in theaters for 2 weeks (1 week left) but now in 3-D! If you have seen a 3-D movie before Toy Story you may not be super impressed since Toy Story was not originally made for 3-D but still looks pretty solid. The movie itself is not changed and remains the classic it was in ’95 when first released. So even if you’ve seen Toy Story 1 and 2 even if recently it’s well worth your money (price of one ticket for two movies) along with your first look at Toy Story 3 (set to be released 6/18/10). With the same solid movie--being one of Pixar’s best, if not the best--in 3-D and is only around for one more week (although may be released on DVD in 3-D). So get there while you can, take the kids, go with a date or just go by yourself and enjoy one of Pixar’s best in 3-D.


Overall Rating: 9 out of 10
3-D Rating: 8 out of 10