Where the Wild Things Are (2009)
Critic Reviews
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100
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Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum
This is one of the year's best. To paraphrase the Wild Thing named KW, I could eat it up, I love it so.
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100
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Rolling Stone Peter Travers
Jonze has filmed a fantasy as if it were absolutely real, allowing us to see the world as Max sees it, full of beauty and terror. The brilliant songs, by Karen O (of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs) and the Kids, enhance the film's power.
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100
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Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern
As wish-fulfillments go, this is a movie lover's dream.
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100
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Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips
Not since Robert Altman took on “Popeye” a generation ago, and lost, has a major director addressed such a well-loved, all-ages title. This time everything works, from tip to tail.
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100
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New Orleans Times-Picayune Mike Scott
His (Jonze) obvious affection for, and veneration of, Maurice Sendak's 1963 Caldecott Medal-winning children's book is palpable in his near-perfect live-action adaptation, a dreamy -- and, like Sendak's book, faintly nightmarish -- exploration of one child's tantrum-y side.
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88
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USA Today Claudia Puig
Like the book, the movie blends a primitive quality with an imaginative artfulness. It also amplifies upon the story's gentle, sly wit.
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80
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New York Daily News Joe Neumaier
The film treats kids' inner lives as more than a fantasy, which is a rare and beautiful thing.
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75
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Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea
A satisfyingly moody, melancholy, madcap live-action romp.
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75
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Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
The movie felt long to me, and there were some stretches during which I was less than riveted. Is it possible that there wasn't enough Sendak story to justify a feature-length film?
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60
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The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt
Where the film falters is Jonze and novelist Dave Eggers' adaptation, which fails to invest this world with strong emotions.
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50
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San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle
The most daring thing that Jonze and Eggers have done is make a children's film that might not really be for kids.
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40
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Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan
When faced as a director with the rudderless screenplay he (Jonze) co-wrote with Eggers, he's been powerless to energize it in any involving way. Sometimes you are better off with 10 sentences than tens of millions of dollars, and this is one of those times.
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