THE WILD THINGS ARE IN OCTOBER OF 2009
- By Devin Faraci
- Published 02/27/2008
- News
The same Variety article that quietly rebuffed all of the internet rumors about the Justice League movie also gives a release date for Spike Jonze's Where the Wild Things Are: October 16, 2009. Yeah, 19 months from now. That's a full year back from the original release date, and something like three years after the movie finished principal photography.
The saga of Where the Wild Things Are has been exhausting. The movie finished shooting in December of 2006, and it did a test screening in Pasadena late in 2007. A friend who was there loved it, but other reactions were less positive - kids burst into tears and plenty of people complained that it was too dark and weird. People like executives at Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros. Rumors began to spread that reshoots would need to be done due to technical issues - the Wild Things were shot practical as men in suits and the intention was to CGI animate their faces in post, but supposedly that was not working out as well as hoped - but CHUD learned that at least some of the reshoots were going to be because the studio sort of hated the movie and the lead child actor. In the meantime the whole 'the reshoots are for technical reasons' spin has continued, but we know the truth. And with the movie being pushed back so far, it's obvious that Warner Bros is giving themselves plenty of time to rebuild this fucker from the ground up.
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Comments
Comment #1 (Posted by AA)
Why the fuck won't JLA go away?
I wanna see the version that made the kids cry.
Comment #2 (Posted by D. Richard)
Sounds lilke WB and Legendary actually wanted a live action Monsters Inc. Couldn't Spike see this coming? In fact, don't all directors see this coming? Average people love average films. Test your film with average audiences, you get what you deserve.
Comment #3 (Posted by JC)
Spike Jonze doesn't seem to be an obedient studio puppet -- he should stick to indies and Charlie Kaufman scripts. As for WTWTA, I hope he at least retains some creative control. Worst case scenario, we get Adam Shankman hired for reshoots and the director's cut surfaces on DVD 10 years after the fact.
Comment #4 (Posted by an unknown user)
This is what happens when you shoot your films in melbourne, australia. They turn out shit. they look like shit, feel like shit and are shit. Here's to another ghost rider and Queen of the damned.
Comment #5 (Posted by Beldar)
Damn. Didn't Spike get fucked when he was trying to adapt Harold and the Purple Crayon for his debut? Sounds like the guy should stay away from children's book adaptations.
Comment #6 (Posted by Stewart)
Kids crying? Too dark and weird? Doesn't that generally translate to something better than garbage like Shrek 3? It's a movie with monsters! It's supposed to be dark, weird and make kids cry! What's next? The remake of Bambi where Bambi's mother show up at the end of the film miracously alive? "Oh, it was just a flesh wound, honey..."
Comment #7 (Posted by Atomo)
Damn dude, thats pretty harsh about Melbourne considering you've seen maybe 2 frames of the movie and the main concerns from execs have been regarding the effects and the lead of the film
Comment #8 (Posted by Jim)
Unknown User, are you retarded? I mean, seriously, maybe just a mild case of downs? I'm not trying to be mean, it's just, well, your comments strike ma as those of some 3/4 'tard with a hate-on towards everything...you know, 'cause your not 'technically' retarded, but you can't quite fit in 'normal' society...maybe get yourself check out, just a thought.
Comment #9 (Posted by Opinion Guy)
This makes me really sad and pissed off. Spike Jonze deserves way better than this. Fuck Warner, Legendary, whoever. My personal sense of aesthetic, my idea of what a good movie is, my style and choices as an artist, were all shaped in part by movies that made me cry as a child; made me feel weird, or threatened. Anyway, if they had any fucking sense at all they'd realize that this movie, based on the source it's based on, has the potential to be a huge draw for adults. I'm 42 years old, and it was one of my favorite childhood reads. Just about every grown adult I know would say the same thing. this is an old book that's endured for generations. It deserves to be more than lukewarm pap. Fucking slackjawed suits.
Comment #10 (Posted by Brad)
What's with the Melbourne hate? Sure... it's no Cockfosters, but if it wasn't for Melbourne, you wouldn't have Chopper Read, Nick Cave, Cate Blanchett or Daryl Sommers.
Comment #11 (Posted by Milou)
In the wikipedia article for Maurice Sendak : "Sendak gained international acclaim after writing and illustrating Where the Wild Things Are, though the book's depictions of fanged monsters concerned parents when it was first released, as his characters were somewhat grotesque in appearance. Sendak's seeming attraction to the forbidden or nightmarish aspects of children's fantasy have made him a subject of controversy."
And you can add that the librarians, the parents and the educators sent trouble letters to the editor, thinking that the book would upset small children or induce nightmares for others... (one librarian writing "it is not a book to be left whre a sensitive child may came upon it at twilight")
And Publishers Weekly wrote "the illustrations may well prove frightening, accompanied as they are by a pointless and confusing story".
And then it became a well acclaimed best-seller and a reference in children literature...
The guys at Warner didn't know that ??
They should think a lot to the critics the book received when it was published in the 60's to decide if the film is good or true to the book.
Comment #12 (Posted by Jaime)
... nobody relates this with "My neighbour Totoro"? Pisses me off.
