A Study of Wild Things................

I love this movie. It's so brave, so uncompromising, so ahead of what parents and society are ready to deal with when it comes to what children should watch and, subsequently, feel. And because of that, it will age beautifully like fine wine. When younger kids look back on this film as adults they'll open their eyes and say "Holy shit!".

Regardless of what anyone says, the only way to accurately judge it is to watch it for yourself. Everyone takes home something different from it. It is deep and it is heavy. Everyone complains Hollywood has no substance anymore, and yet a film comes along with lots of substance and no one's interested. Apparently parents think this film is not OK for kids, but a robot who yells "You crazy bitch!" and humps Megan Fox's leg IS. *sighs*

Well, in the meantime, for those of us who can appreciate fine art and a fantastic film that delves deep into the psyche of this young boy, I wrote a case study on what I think of all its hidden themes and representations.

BEWARE OF SPOILERS. DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE FILM !!!!!!


Everything that happens in the first 15 minutes foreshadows the rest of the film, to such ambiguous and delicate prevail. It's not so literal, so people who have seen this film multiple times are still debating what it all means. And unfortunately, most people just didn't get it. Unlike all the other crap out there, I guess people didn't expect to turn ON their brains at the door for this one.

The Snowball Fight :

The Snowball Fight at the beginning of the film = The Dirt Clod War. Both start out fun and innocently enough, but both end up badly. Max gets hurt and no longer wants to play. Alexander gets hurt and no longer wants to play. Actions always equals consequences, and that theme is repeated throughout the film.

The Heart :

Max had made a heart out of Popsicle sticks with his sister's name in it. When he gets mad at his sister, he breaks it into pieces. On the island, Max draws hearts with his first initial in them. Clearly, he wants to be loved and doesn't feel loved enough. But because it's what he does back home, it's a clear sign of familiarity and comfort for Max. It could also show a sign of regret because he regrets breaking the plastic heart he made his sister.

Max's Bedroom :

- In Max's bedroom we see a Lego figure holding another Lego figure on its shoulders = Max rides Carol on his shoulders. The Lego figures are also standing in a self-made nest = the fort Max and the Wild Things build.

- There is a little city made out of toilet paper rolls on Max's desk = the model city that Carol built.

- Max's dad gave him an Earth Globe that reads "To Max, owner of this world, love Dad" = Carol tells Max he is the "owner of this world".

- There is a ball made of rubber elastics by Max's bedside = the huts the Wild Things sleep in.

- Stuffed animals = Wild Things. This is probably the most literal translation between the two.

In The Classroom :

Max's teacher warns the class that the sun will die, but that the human race will probably fall to natural disasters before then, such as earthquakes, tsunamis, global warming, etc. All this could lend itself to the vivid imagination used for the violent and crashing waves that take Max out to sea when he runs away from home. It also shows that kids are very affected by what they learn, and thus too much knowledge leads to fear. Max is scared the sun is going to die. He tells Carol, and at first Carol brushes it off as nonsense. But later on we see that Carol has also been affected by it. He suppresses his fear of such knowledge and only lets it out when he's in a fit of rage...............just like Max. Just like children. Just like adults.

The Story :
Max tells his mom a story about a vampire that lost all his teeth because he bit a building. None of the other vampires wanted to be friends with him because without any teeth, he couldn't be a vampire any more. So everyone left him. The End. On the island, Carol tells Max what it feels like when everything falls a part; it's like loosing a tooth, then all your teeth start spacing out, then before you know it, all your teeth are gone. A broken family? Divorce? Being ignored? The story itself foreshadows the story of Max's journey with the Wild Things; He pretends to be a King and the Wild Things are in awe of him. By the end, when Max is revealed to be just a regular boy, the Wild Things feel betrayed and Max feels all alone.

Moving along to the Wild Things. These creatures are far more human than most humans in movies. They are complex, and honest. They are adults as much as they are kids. They still don't know any better, and Max guides them as their King. The irony is Max is still a child himself, and is dealing with his emotional heartbreak through these monsters. Each Wild Thing represents not only Max, but other people in his life :


Carol - Carol is the lead Wild Thing. He IS Max, but he also plays the role of father-figure. I know a lot of people disagree with the father-angle, but as I mentioned before, everything is forehsadowed in the beginning of the film to suggest this. And if it isn't, even more props goes to the brilliant ambiguity writen in the script. Max doesn't live with his father, and it is incredibly obvious he wishes his family could be together again. He views Carol as the father figure that isn't present. Carol is Max as a young boy when he is frustrated and sad, but he becomes Max's father when he is wise and caring, in charge, and leading the other Wild Things (his "family"). He wants to be the King of the Wild Things, as much as he wants his father to come back and be the man of the household. Max's Earth Globe reads "To Max, Owner Of This World, Love Dad". Carol takes Max along for a ride on his shoulders (as a father would with his son) and tells him he's the "owner of this world".

But Carol also harbors a temper. One must wonder what kind of relationship Max had with his dad. Were they best friends? Was his best friend taken away when his mom and dad split up? What if Max didn't like his dad? How does the relationship between him and Carol change if that's the case? I would assume that Carol would be the father Max always wanted. Or maybe he's the father Max had, but no longer sees. We know nothing about Max's father, so this is all left for interpretation. Which is beautiful.

Near the end, Carol has a falling out with Max. In fact, he turns against him. He feels extremely betrayed and is disappointed in Max when he finds out Max isn't even a King. This supports the idea that perhaps Max is extremely disappointed in himself that his father left him, and in his mind because he isn't a King and only "regular", he wasn't good enough for his dad to stick around. He partly blames himself.


K.W. - I have no idea what "K.W." stands for, and I'm not even going to try to guess, but there is no doubt that she plays the mother role in all this. She is kind, accepting, nourishing, understanding, level-headed, and compassionate. Her and Carol aren't talking. We don't know why, but something happened between the two of them that has lead them both ashtray. And even though they still try and tolerate each other, they are very distant and can only do so every so often. In fact, they only tolerate each other when Max tries bringing them together. Carol and K.W. are Max's mom and dad who are separate. Further proof of this is when Carol shows Max the model city he built. In it, there is a little toy miniature of Carol and K.W. in love, sailing on a boat.

Another example is when K.W. steps on Carol's head during the Dirt Clod War. Carol and K.W. start arguing and Max hides behind a corner and observes the two, frightened. It is a stunningly accurate portrait of a child who is watching his mommy and daddy fight. Then there's the dynamic between K.W. and the Owls, known as Bob and Terry. Bob and Terry are K.W.'s friends, and she asks Max if they can live with everyone in the Fort they built. Max asks her, "Well....what about Carol?" and K.W. replies, "I can still like Carol and be friends with Bob and Terry". Meaning? "I can still date other guys, and still love your father, Max". Bob and Terry represent the boyfriends Max's mother has had ever since his dad left.

And lastly, and probably the most beautiful, is when Max hides inside K.W.'s stomach. Carol has turned against Max and is running after him. K.W. tells Max to hide inside her to be safe, so he does. K.W. expresses her disappointment in Carol, stating he's always too "difficult". This gives Max time to think and ponder on his own feelings. He replies, "He doesn't mean to be that way, K.W. He's just scared......". Max is self realizing why he acts out and is such a menace. Because he's scared. He misses his family, and wants to go back home. He wants his mommy. This conclusion is met while Max is inside K.W.'s stomach = the baby inside it's mother's womb.



Douglas - The voice of reason. He is Carol's right hand man, but also Max's conscience. He is always willing to give good advice. Whenever Carol does something wrong or outrageous, Douglas is the one who'll try and correct the matter. He makes the most sense out of the situation. When Max is breaking down the Wild Things' huts, Douglas asks him, "What are you doing? These are our homes, and we've worked really hard to build them!". Whenever Douglas steps in, Max is unknowingly second-guessing his actions and what the consequences might be. Douglas would most notably represent the family therapist in the real world. One can imagine how many (if any) couple counseling sessions Max has been to, and if Douglas is the creation of such examples. At the end when Carol rips off his arm, sand pours out. Douglas has failed, and the family is falling a part. He can't hold them together. When Max sees Carol and Douglas sitting on top of a cliff, you really get the sense that Carol had just gone through one of Douglas's in-depth therapy sessions. And the reason why Douglas never gets his arm back? Well, just like Max's family situation and many others in real life -- you can't fix everything.

Judith - Max's sister. She's grumpy, she's uninterested. She doubts Max. She questions his authority. And just like Max's sister, she could care less, quite frankly. There raises an issue about respect in the household, and what position Max has. Obviously, he would want to be the ruler of the house, pretending to be King and all. It would appear he feels inferior compared to his sister. She's older, and doesn't want to play with Max. She'd rather go out with her friends. When Max commands, "Be Still!", Judith asks, "Why?". During the Dirt Clod War, she talks back at him and tells him he's not allowed to talk back at her or her boyfriend Ira, and if she wanted to eat him up there's nothing he could do about it. Basically, Max's sister has authority over him, which he hates. She also manifests herself into the cynical side of Max. In the beginning, when Max is at the kitchen table he asks his mom, "Frozen corn? What's wrong with real corn?". Which is exactly what Judith would say.


Ira - Ira is Judith's boyfriend. He represents his sister's friends. Older kids that any young boy would look up to and want to be friends with. When Max starts the snowball fight, it's all out of good intentions. Why? Because Max wants to play. He wants to be friends with them, too. He wants to be just involved with them as his sister is. Ira is a gentle giant. He is good at digging holes. Perhaps those holes represent the widening gap between Max and his sister through her friends. Besides, Ira dug holes into trees, and trees represent a family unit, like a Family Tree. And a Family Tree with a hole in it is just as painful as a hole in the heart.

Alexander - Alexander is the shy, lonely, ignored side of Max. Always off to the side. Nobody really listens to him. He is still very childish, and hasn't reached the maturity level of the other Wild Things yet. He pretty much is the weakest link, which is exactly how Max feels like within his family. Alex is always looking for K.W.'s affection, just like Max is always looking for his mother's affection. He throws a tantrum when he is hurt during the Dirt Clod War, just like Max does when he gets hurt during the snowball fight. Alexander sits down by himself and contemplates what happened. Just like Max lies in bed, thinking about the actions he just took when he trashed his sister's room.

The Bull - Depression. He's large, he's all black, he's always sulking and by himself. Nobody really talks to him or bothers him for anything. He is the quintessential form of depression and pain manifesting itself in Max's heart. He's also scary. Scary because Max knows nothing about him. Scary because the unknown itself is scary. And in the end the Bull finally speaks, and you realize things aren't really that bad.

The End :
Things aren't exactly resolved when Max leaves the Wild Things, and that's because his family life is not yet resolved. Will it ever be? Maybe, we don't know, but that's life. Max learned to control the Wild Things on the island, and now he must learn to control himself in the real world. Another way you can look at it is perhaps Max leaving the Wild Things IS the resolution : he's leaving behind all the pain and sadness as he decides to return home. He arrives at home regretful and worried. He eats his soup and chocolate cake. His mother sits across from him and stares at him, peacefully. She dozes off to sleep. Max just looks at her for a long while. There is an unspoken forgiveness and understanding between the two. In the end, his mother was there to welcome him back and make him food, like any good, loving mother would. Because despite everything, Max doesn't mean to be bad. Like Carol, it's because he's scared, and he's used his emotions and imagination run wild to illustrate and identify that. Max is a good boy in a lot of pain.

Aren't we all?
Thank you for reading.