93: Where the Wild Things Are with Drew McWeeny

About this episode

Phil and Emily discuss the film 'Where the Wild Things Are' with Drew McWeeny, exploring its production and themes.

Phil and Emily are joined by film critic, screenwriter, and Hip Pocket podcast host Drew McWeeny to discuss Where the Wild Things Are (2009), the Spike Jonze adaptation of Maurice Sendak's 85-word picture book that cost roughly $100 million, barely broke even, got one Blu-ray release, and has been sitting in a strange kind of limbo ever since. Drew has been close to this film longer than almost anyone outside the production. He saw a rough cut in Pasadena before a single effects shot was completed, got a personal call from Legendary Pictures founder Thomas Tull asking for his honest reaction, and later sat down with Spike Jonze himself for two hours as the film fought to find its finish line. Phil thinks it's a miracle it exists at all. Emily finds it formally audacious and sometimes frustrating in equal measure. Drew thinks it's a great film. He also thinks it might not be a film for children. The three dig into the full production story, from the Jim Henson Company's 50-pound creature heads that got scrapped six weeks before filming to Spike's decision to shoot everything handheld with no green screens and no tracking dots on any of the creatures. They talk about why James…

People in this episode

Hosts: Phil, Emily

Guest: Drew McWeeny

Topics covered

• film analysis
• adaptation
• production story
• childhood
• film criticism

Keywords

• Where the Wild Things Are
• Spike Jonze
• Drew McWeeny
• film criticism
• James Gandolfini

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Jim Henson Company, Legendary Pictures

Books & works: Where the Wild Things Are

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