A lonely but imaginative boy is fed up with being ignored at
home and after an argument with his mother, runs away. He reaches a pond and
gets into a small sailing boat. The pond soon becomes a sea and after days
afloat he finds himself on an island inhabited with seven giant creatures.
Spotting a similarity between himself and the destructive Carol (James
Gandolfini) the boy Max (Max Records) soon finds himself in the middle of the
group and convinces them he is a King in order to stop them eating him. Each
monster is like a version of Max and themes of jealousy, fear, boredom and
frustration are the same which trouble pre teen children as they grow up.
I never saw the film on its initial release back in 2009 but
had heard some good things about it. A quick search confirms that it appeared
on numerous Top 10 lists but for me it isn’t quite that good. I thought the
effects and cinematography were excellent and the story had its moments but it
was also a little dull in places and the sort of film which I’d rather have
watched in my early teens.
