Before there was Monsters Inc., before there was The Never Ending Story, there was the Maurice Sendak classic Where the Wild Things Are. I remember in elementary school kids racing to our library’s copy of this book during reading time. The story, the pictures, it was the perfect blend of intellectual adventure and visual stimulation. That’s my take now. Back then I just knew I liked it.
It should come as no surprise my reaction to seeing the trailer for Spike Jonze’s movie version of this book was much the same. The visuals draw you in immediately. Rather than morph the classic into some CGI dominated computer project, the filmakers decided to take a more Jim Henson / Michel Gondry approach. The construction paper-meets-glue art direction is right out of a 5th grade art class. This choice instantly romantasizes the movie even more. The honesty and crudeness of the characters and sets speaks directly to the child in all of us. Couple that with a brilliant, new, stripped-down version of Arcade Fire’s anthem “Wake Up,” and you’ve got a commercial for something I can’t wait to buy.
