day 244

the wild things are coming

the 1963 children's book, that's been a staple in ever kid's bedroom since then, is finally getting the 21st century treatment with a full on, big screen adaptation. maurice sendak's where the wild things are always used to creep me out when i was little and, to be honest, i have no clue why. i don't remember the story at all, but the illustrations still haunt me today. the film is being helmed by music video master spike jonze, and definitely has his signature flair - well, from the trailer at least (which you can check out above). the look of the film, as well as the interpretation of the monsters, seems pretty true to the source material, which is always a plus when adapting a classic. this is the second film adapatation of the book, the first being a 1970s animated take that i think i remember seeing in elementary school (though i probably didn't pay much attention because of the creep-out factor). surprisingly, disney owned the rights to the book in the 1980s, but failed to produce anything. they mouse house attempted one of the first cgi animated films ever with the project, only coming up with a tester preview. this version is a warner brother's property, but it wasn't always that way. the movie has been in the works since 2000 at universal studios, with a teaser trailer premiering before the jim carrey version of the grinch. repotedly, spike jonze's vision was not one universal cared to support. warner bros picked up the rights sometime around 2006, with filming begining soon after. the reason jonze's vision was so controversial is that he wanted - and did - film wild things with a handheld camera, a technique usually reserved for low budget indies. while reports recently said that the wb wanted to reshoot the entire film, they shot the idea down, saying they supported spike and his version of the film. amongst hollywood's creative community, like chronicles of narnia make-up artist howard berger, the film is bound to fail. berger allegedly got into special effects artistry because of the book, but has been cited as saying turning it into a feature film was a "horrible idea." i can see where he's coming from, especially after reading that the creatures are actually actors is giant suits, built as tall as 9 feet, with computer generated faces. but, i guess the truth will be had when the film hits theaters in mid-october. though, i probably won't be there.