Two Eggers' movies take characters on a journey far from home

I have never read a Dave Eggers book, but somehow in one weekend I managed to watch two movies based on screenplays by the writer. The first was a movie that is out on DVD that I wanted to see when it came out in theaters, but it never opened locally. The other is the movie with mainstream draw that opened this weekend, "Where the Wild Things Are."

In some ways both of the movies are about finding place to belong and learning how to be a family. In "Away We Go," which starts on a note not for anyone with prudish tendencies, Burt (John Krasinski) and Verona (Maya Rudolph) discover that they are expecting a baby. They are both 33, unmarried and not quite sure what to do when Burt's parents announce they are moving overseas for two years. Burt is an insurance salesman and Verona is an artist of sorts. So when she is six months pregnant, the two decide to set out on a cross country trip to find a place they might belong. They criss cross to Phoenix, Madison and Montreal, visiting old friends and the few family members they have left. Verona worries constantly that she will be a bad mother or that the two of them are, as she says "fuck ups."

The whole point of the movie seems to be that Burt and Verona discover that even the people they know who seem to have it altogether still have their faults, their pains and their breakdowns. In the end, the thing that matters most is not whether they are married, have good jobs or have a complete plan for parenthood, but that they love each other and the baby on the way. The movie isn't quite a feel-good journey, but there are some funny and heart-breaking moments along the way. The main downside of the movie is that Burt's character isn't developed strongly enough to make people forget that Krasinski plays Jim on "The Office." Verona comes away as the more developed character, with a family background that explains her actions and concerns about becoming a family.

"Where the Wild Things Are," based on a children's book by Maurice Sendak, is also about finding a place to belong. Max (Max Records) runs away from home after he feels ignored by his sister and mother. The creatures he finds when he sails away to a far away island represent all the angry, hurt and scared feelings he has about his family. Though it is not spelled out in the movie, it's clear Max's parents are divorced and his mother has just started seeing someone else. The creatures make Max king, but he learns that it's not so easy to be the one who is responsible for keeping everyone safe and happy. The creatures are voiced by James Gandolfini, Catherine O'Hara (who also plays Burt's mother in "Away We Go"), Lauren Ambrose and Paul Dano, among others.

The movies may have completely different premises, but in the end they are both about going home.