Blog #1 Museum Of Modern Art - In Cahoots: Maurice Sendak & Spike Jonze

As the schedule of the Museum of the Moving Image proved impossible for me, I found my way instead to a screening of “In Cahoots: Maurice Sendak and Spike Jonze” at the Museum Of Modern Art. It was attended by the titular characters and promised a moderated conversation and a brief audience Q&A after the film was shown. It was one of those fun star-studded New York events that brought out not only Sendak and Jonze, but also Julianne Moore, Carter Burwell, the film composer, the playwright, Tony Kushner and Katherine Keener, who also appears in the movie.

The film played out as a tribute to Maurice Sendak’s life and work as a beloved children’s author. It was told intimately, utilizing handheld digital video in Mr. Sendak’s Connecticut home using mostly natural light sources. Spike Jonze played off-camera interviewer and cameraman throughout, although there were occasional shots of him as he was shooting too. The film mainly consisted of medium shots to close-ups with some initial establishing shots of his home. There were also ample close-ups of family photos and, of course, his drawings. The film felt very personal, which I think the handheld camera enhanced, almost at times feeling like a high quality home movie.

I may be one of the few people that are unfamiliar with “Where the Wild Things Are” or any other of Maurice Sendak’s numerous books. This portrait gave me insight into some of his artistic influences (namely his older brother) along with some defining moments in his life that later lent a certain danger or unease to his work.