Escape from anger

Wild Things wonderfully captures a boy's sense of abandonment | Megan Basham

Warner Bros. Pictures

A lot of confused, disappointed little faces are going to be exiting director Spike Jonze's adaptation of the classic children's story Where the Wild Things Are. The PG rating may suggest family viewing, but while there's nothing more than mild language and slightly intense action to keep kids away, there's also not much beyond those furry monsters to engage them. Thankfully, the same can't be said for grown-up moviegoers.

Where the Wild Things Are is essentially a film for adults and older children that looks back on childhood. Max, as everyone who's read the book will remember, is an angry little boy with a big imagination. Beyond that, author Maurice Sendak never gave readers much information. And perhaps because of this absence, there was always something odd and thrilling about the simple little picture book—we never knew whether Max reformed from his tantrum-throwing ways or what prompted them in the first place.