Decades following its book debut in 1963 to much critical acclaim, the movie version of “Where the Wild Things Are” has now been released. Author Maurice Sendak was convinced by his friend, director Spike Jonze, that a film true to the book could and would be made.

Well, it was worth the wait. Most of today’s baby-boomer generation can recall this book in an instant, and how cool it was that Max was bad. This writer adored the book, and has a very fond memory of Mrs. Irish, a first grade teacher at Lewiston-Porter, reading it to our class. Needless to say, we all loved it.

Despite many offers by the top studios, starting in 1963, Sendak simply felt that a film version could never be portrayed exactly as he envisioned Max’s world in his masterpiece. So rather than have his story turned into a sugar-coated Disney product, with fairies and mice and a happy ending, Sendak was simply content to have his best work exist strictly in the literary world, leaving celluloid behind. Jonze, known for his edgy and Indie type films, became friends with Sendak in 1995 and they had been working out the idea of a “WTWTA” film ever since.

The tone of the film is definitely a bit murky. There are no bright lights, or splashy primary colors anywhere to be found in this kids’ movie. Filmed in the craggy but beautiful southern Australian coast, we feel like we are on a moon beach, rather than a typical, fun, toes-in-the-sand beach. The film opens with Max, (played by Max Records who is brilliant and buoyant in his role) acting a little bit cheeky towards his single mom (played without much jazz by Catherine Keener). She is expecting company, and Max is just being a twitchy, average little kid, who doesn’t feel like listening to his mom, so he bolts out the front door instead. Next thing we know, he is at the edge of a dark lake or ocean, finds a sailboat, and without ado, heads off for his adventure. When he lands, he hears loud