Where The Wild Things Are Pushed Back Indefinitely

By Katey Rich: 2008-07-14 10:53:12

It started as a hugely anticipated movie among independent film fans and general audiences alike, but Where The Wild Things Are may now be in danger of becoming an urban legend, a visionary movie that nobody ever gets to see. The Spike Jonze adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s seminal children’s book has suffered rumors of its own demise for months, as the release date continues to be pushed back and Jonze reportedly tries to retool his vision to satisfy Warner Bros.

Now Patrick Goldstein, the reporter and blogger for The Los Angeles Times, is taking a look at the movie in his blog The Big Picture, motivated by the fact that Warner Bros. has completely removed Wild Things from its upcoming schedule. Uh-oh. Being a big-time reporter, Goldstein got Warner Bros. reps on the phone, and they promised not all was lost. “"We'd like to find a common ground that represents Spike's vision but still offers a film that really delivers for a broad-based audience. We obviously still have a challenge on our hands,” said Warner exec Alan Horn, with perhaps a gigantic understatement. By way of reassurance, he added, “No one wants to turn this into a bland, sanitized studio movie. This is a very special piece of material and we're just trying to get it right."

Goldstein points out that Warner Bros. has made an effort to hand over big-budget properties to visionary, upstart directors, and has had massive success, from Alfonso Cuaron’s definitive take on Harry Potter to Steven Soderbergh’s Ocean’s series. But, then again, these are the guys who gave the Wachowskis Speed Racer, and pretty much everyone lived to regret that decision. Jonze has proven his visual dexterity in his music videos and mind-bending features, but the success of his two movies thus far (Being John Malkovich and Adaptation) could both conceivably be credited to Charlie Kaufman, who came up with the story that keeps Jonze’s weird vision afloat. Jonze has Dave Eggers on his side for the Wild Things screenplay, but still, it’s possible that this time he can’t find the balance between the bizarre aesthetics and the story that keeps the movie alive.

Goldstein repeats rumors that children cried and ran out of test screenings, and that Jonze is currently trying to find a way to make his puppet-CGI hybrid “wild things” more compelling characters. So it looks like this isn’t just an instance of an evil studio clamping down on a talented filmmaker, but a series of problems way too big to overcome in the editing room. Goldstein’s article asks “Can Spike Jonze save Where The Wild Things Are?” The less optimistic question, but perhaps the more accurate one, is “Has Spike Jonze killed Where The Wild Things Are?”

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Michael Hays
July 29, 2008 at 01:47

If it is good enough for the author, its good enough for me.

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Alix
July 15, 2008 at 17:52

Spike Jonze had originally cast Perla, the little girl in Kill Bill Vol. 2, as Max. When Spike showed his movie to executives, they were blown away by the kid- until they found out that the actor portraying Max is actually a girl. Then they quickly became disinterested, citing the fact that the book's fans would be turned off by a girl playing the role of Max.

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Tman
July 15, 2008 at 17:52

Ive seen the movie at the big test screening they did in Pasadena 6 months back and this movie is not right. It has Spikes cool look and the creatures look amazing (when they did have full face animations which was only a few times) But the film is really really boring. And does not make sense in the edit I saw. I don't see how this can be fixed. Tony Saproano was the voice of the main monster. it was scary when he got made cause I thought he was going to shoot the kid. YIKES

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mgbesq
July 15, 2008 at 17:52

18-30 age group? PG-13? This book came out in the 1960's and children from that time are nearly 50. There's no need for this movie in the first place, but since it exists it should be said that this movie ought to embrace as much of the book as possible, and that includes recognizing its broad appeal. If it's just some hipster-niche film that only plays up to 25-year olds, that would be a shame. It's a children's story meant for children, and if the tone of the original is respected the rest will take care of itself.

I think it's funny to hear a studio exec talk about avoiding making sanitized studio films.

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Zeli
July 15, 2008 at 14:17

I 2nd that. This movie is for Teens to 30 year olds. Yes it would be nice to share it with a new generation but if that's the case then why did the pick this movie.

I've been waiting for this movie to come out for years now. Am I surprised that little kids get scared no. The Wild Things were cool cause they looked scary. What do you think the real life version of them would look like.

The Suits fucked up cause the prob never seen the book then went crazy when the saw the finished product. At which point they finally read the book and shit themselves. When they saw that Spike was Authentic on his version of the Wild Things.

A Western Cartoon or Anime would have made it less scary but remember that something that is a little scary as a cartoon turns to real fear in real life.

The books art style is a little dark. Suits you fucked up. Big time. Spike did not.

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Bran
July 14, 2008 at 18:01

"children cried and ran out of test screenings"

I MUST see this film.
I don't understand why they're trying to market this film to children anyway. Anybody who cares enough about WTWTA is at least a teenager by now. I say they leave it the way it is and simply market it to the 18-30 crowd (who grew up with the damn book). Shove some t-shirts, messenger bags and McFarlane toys into Hot Topic, do some viral internet marketing and with all this controversy over it being released at all, give it a PG-13 and it'll be a hit!

Duh.

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