Spike Jonze Unveils New Where the Wild Things Are Photos!

November 18, 2008
by Alex Billington

Finally some new photos! As part of Moriarty's ludicrously long interview with Spike Jonze that was published today, two new photos from the long-awaited Where the Wild Things Are adaptation have been unveiled. As I'm sure most know, the project got stuck in some sort of development hell (almost literally) after a very bad test screening more than a year ago (read more about that here). It was so bad that Warner Brothers sent Jonze out again in order to reportedly reshoot most of the entire movie. If you've got the time to spare or are a big Spike Jonze fan, I highly suggest you read the full interview. If not, then take a quick look at these two new beautiful photos from the film below.

Click either of the photos below for a much bigger high res version courtesy of Ain't It Cool News.

My favorite quotes from the interview are about how honest the book is to kids. A woman, who had been given the book by her parents, came up to them at one of the screenings and said that, "when our parents got it for us, they didn't really know what it meant. But we knew what it meant." Jonze adds that, "I think somehow that book, and also Maurice's work, just taps into feelings kids have. And I know that I wouldn't have been able to say this when I was a kid, but looking back, there was something honest about it, and as a kid you're given so much stuff that's not honest and is just sort of pandering or whatever that when you are given something that's talking to you directly, you just sit up straight and connect to it and love it."

I still remain hopeful that we'll get to see most of Jonze's vision for the film in the end, despite the reshoots. "One of the things I was worried about is that the book is just so beloved to so many people. And as I started to have ideas for it, I was worried that I was just making what it means to me, and what the book triggers in me from when I was a kid. And I'd be worried that other people were gonna be disappointed, because it's like adapting a poem. It can mean so much to so many different people," Jonze says. But it was the author of the book, Maurice Sendak, who set him straight. "Maurice was very insistent that that's all I had to do… just make what it was to me, just to make something personal and make something that takes kids seriously and doesn't pander to them." I hope that honesty is what makes it so damn good in the end.

We don't yet know what the status of the release is for Where the Wild Things Are, but we'll be sure to provide you with the details once we know them. I'm still anxiously awaiting the opportunity to see Where the Wild Things Are - because I believe Spike has created something endearing, and potentially edgy, and I want to see what he has been able to do with such a beloved children's story. As always, stay tuned!

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