If you love Karen O, if you know Futura bold from Helvetica, and if your other interests include plimsolls and self-conscious punctuation, then you’re probably excited about this year’s crop of kids films for adults. But, then again, who wouldn’t be? Fantastic Mr Fox was so good that it’s just as well Where The Wild Things Are is on its way to fill the void of excitement. Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland also fits the mould, promising a dark reinterpretation of a children’s classic. But, whereas Burton’s high-budget Disney production may appeal to a younger audience, autumn’s offerings are strategically marketing themselves to an older generation.

Originally planned for release in May 2008, Where the Wild Things Are was postponed by Warner Bros amidst concerns about its suitability. There were even rumours of a possible reshoot, threatening a projected $75 million. Given the pairing of director Spike Jonze and co-writer Dave Eggers, the film’s decidedly adult tone is unsurprising. Jonze’s previous projects have hardly been easygoing– witness 1999’s Being John Malkovich– and Eggers’ own background rules out a tale of conventional familial bliss. Most importantly, though, Maurice Sendak’s book is itself a chill exploration of childhood anger.

When asked if he thought Jonze’s film was too frightening for children, Sendak replied: “if [you] can’t handle it, go home. Or wet your pants.” Whether or not the film is that frightening remains to be seen but Jonze’s screenplay has explicitly not shied away from the less palatable themes of Sendak’s book: “I was just trying to make a movie that felt like being that age.”

Mr Fox’s family dynamic is also far from perfect. Dahl was never afraid of the dark. George Clooney’s all-singing, all-dancing hero is, at worst, an unforgivably bad father. This more realistic outlook on family life is, in part, what denies these films straightforward classification.

The trailer for Tim Burton’s Alice spells out a parallel movement away from the adult. Yes, Johnny Depp is there with a maniacal grin. Yes, there are toadstools and eerily striped plants, but everything feels slightly more sugar-coated. As the giant opening credit proclaims, adults will be in theatres to see Tim Burton’s latest film but this will be no Edward Scissorhands.

The entertainment industry is shifting towards the family market and this means a tactical rapprochement of the adult and children’s genres. The audience age range for these films will be drastically increased by their cult directors and highly-stylized production. Pitching their films to catch both their older fan base and a slice of the family market guarantees financial success: but are Jonze, Burton and Anderson being more calculating than their offbeat exteriors would suggest, and at what cost? For our generation, who grew up hardened by Watership Down, the creepier elements of these children’s films might be welcomed but they also dilute the output of more subtle adult cinema. It is perhaps the adults and not the children who are being talked down to.