Wow here is a director who really understands how to make movies for children and has a proper undertanding of issues that concern parents.
Jonze: What do you say to parents who think the Wild Things film may be too scary?
Sendak: I would tell them to go to hell. That’s a question I will not tolerate.
Jonze: Because kids can handle it?
Sendak: If they can’t handle it, go home. Or wet your pants. Do whatever you like. But it’s not a question that can be answered. [reference]
So surprised that Pixar hasn’t hired him yet.
9 comments
Actually, Pixar’s movies tend to be pretty reasonable for kids—at least, I haven’t had to censor one yet.
What’s your source on the quote? It doesn’t seem to be linked.
Peace,
–Peter
Peter,
Reference added and my Pixar reference was meant to be Ironic. Long live Pixar!
Oh, that’s not the director. That’s Maurice Sendak, who wrote the picture book the movie is – very loosely – based on. Sendak’s always been a bit of a curmudgeon. A talented curmudgeon, nonetheless. I like his books, but I doubt I’ll like this schlocky-sounding movie.
I like the concept and there’s obviously been a lot of work put into it. But Max is supposed to be a toddler. Yet he’s played by a young teenager, and in the movie he’s supposed to be well into school age.
I’m sorry. Can’t suspend that much disbelief.
Stuff White People Like #127: Where the Wild Things Are. 🙂
If parents only realized the truth Brothers Grimm stories, they might think differently. Those were pretty violent or gory stories.
Personally, this was my favorite childhood book. But it should have never made it to the big screen… it BELONGS in the imagination. Having a movie will ruin it, I am afraid. The book was never scary to me as a child … why should the movie be? SAD.
Sendak’s work always creeped me out a bit, even though I liked Where the Wild Things are. Other than that one book I’ve never exposed my kids to his work. In interviews I’ve always got the impression that he didn’t like any fellow human beings. I read original versions of fairytales to kids not the disneyfied versions because in removing the violent and scary parts, disney also removed many of the spiritual truths.
I have no intention of seeing this film or letting my kids see it. Compare the TV version of When the Grinch Stole Christmas to the movie. In order to expand a short book into a 90 minute movie they had to add all sorts of inappropriate material. I’m worried that they will do the same with this book.
That’s really funny.
Speaking of Where the Wild Things Are, I think it’s interesting to ask parents what they do (when reading to a kid) for the three pages where there are no words.