“Where The Wild Things Are” (2009)
Max’s world makes little sense to him, and it’s even frightening at times. His parents are divorced, his older sister wants nothing to do with him, and while he might feel protected romping around in his wolf costume, the sun will eventually die ending us all. There are few films like Spike Jonze’s “Where The Wild Things Are” that capture not just the fear, confusion and loneliness that comes with being a kid, but the intensity of those feelings as well. But when Max runs away and joins the Wild Things on their island, it seems he’s suddenly found a home with a welcoming bunch of equally sensitive monsters, and finds a kindred spirit in the most unlikely one of the group. Carol is equally impulsive and as raw nerved as Max, and as voiced by James Gandolfini — in a performance that finds a different texture and deeper heart to his Tony Soprano toughness — his trademark growl is softer here, perhaps even uncertain, as his brittle exterior hides a more vulnerable core. Carol’s fearsome, violent anger (he terrifyingly rips someone’s arm off) is only equaled by the size of his heart, and like any child would be finding out that something they thought was true isn’t, he’s devastated when he learns Max isn’t really the king that has come to unite the Wild Things. The part is a tough one — particularly considering Gandolfini has to transmit this complex web of emotions mostly with his voice, while hoping the VFX can catch up — but the actor finds all the right notes in playing the wise counsel, who still holds out hope (like of all us) that something or someone will come along to fix the pain in his life. And that’s really the big lesson of “Where The Wild Things Are,” that the loss of innocence as we get older is a difficulty we’ll have to learn to sustain and move on from. But sometimes, it’s just a bit of perspective that can get us through the day. When Max worries about the sun dying, Carol gives him advice that you’re sure he’ll never forget (and that we certainly don’t): “You’re the king. And, look at me, I’m big! How can guys like us worry about a tiny little thing like the sun?”
“In The Loop” (2009)
Most fans of Armando Iannucci’s “The Thick Of It” knew that he’d be assembling a murderer’s row of comedic voices for this sort-of spinoff, with each put-upon politico trading rat-a-tat barbs and slander like sworn enemies. But seeing the Americans cast had to give some audience members pause: former TV star David Rasche? The original “My Girl” Anna Chlumsky? And at the time it seemed unusual to consider what role burly, intimidating Gandolfini would play against these sharp-tongued visitors, as he’s never been known to spit rapid-fire dialogue in a heightened comic atmosphere. Turns out, surprise, Gandolfini’s a natural: as Lieutenant General George Miller, Gandolfini creates possibly the most complex and likable figure in the picture, a decorated head honcho who nonetheless has zero battle experience. Every character fears him, and when he speaks he has considerable bark: it’s in his quieter moments where he reveals his own insecurities that work as the strongest dramatic moments in a very funny movie. It’s a complex character, and Gandolfini creates a plausible idea that he may be on higher ground than those who surround him, but he does have to use a children’s toy when it comes time to perform military calculations.
