I finally saw this movie on Monday (finally!). When I was a little girl, I loved the book very much and I think the film makers wanted to make a film, not just for children reading the book now, but the past two or three generations of children that loved it growing up.
Of course, the story is greatly expanded and dramatized, but I don't think they do anything out of line. It sticks with the themes from the original book and shows Max seeing his own flaws reflected in some of the creatures and growing as a person through this experience.
The Creatures were all fantastic,combing costumed actors with animatronics and CGI. Jim Henson's Creature Shop made the costumes. The soundtrack was also really impressive, not just background music, but actually sometimes combining sounds of almost ferral screaming.
There's not much I can say about the film as a critic. It gave me a feeling of reminiscent sadness that was very pleasant, if that makes any sense. I did love that it opens with a scene of Max chasing the dog with a fork just like the in the book.
I think I had such high hopes of this movie that I was bound to be a little bit disappointed. I liked the background story, the music and the Creatures, except the fact that they were somewhat depressing. I was expecting them to be scary and rambunctious, but not depressing. A little bit more fun and I would have been happier. Overall a good movie, though.
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Yes, I did feel that it was sad, more than I expected. It wouldn't be my choice to watch if I were feeling depressed.
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