Where the Wild Things Are

This is not for kids, but it’s a wise examination of the emotional state of a kid. Some of the symbolic “wild things” reflect Max’s emotional state more clearly than others. It’s fascinating to hear Carol (voiced by James Gandolfini), Barney the dinosaur’s rough-and-tumble step-cousin with the voice of a New Jersey teamster, complain like child when he’s hurt, both physically and emotionally. In the “where” of Where the Wild Things Are, Max validates his own feelings, but also learns to empathize with his mother or sister when they come face-to-face with the hairy beast that is his developing emotional world. There are plenty of movies in which an adult learns how to understand their kid, but it’s rare to find a movie depicting a kid learning how to understand adults. The filmmaking and performances are first-rate and the expressive faces of the “things” are awesome, but it’s the ambitious goal of bringing a kid’s ungainly emotional world to life that makes this so unique.