22 Family Movies Not To Watch With Your Family On Thanksgiving

Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures.

Where the Wild Things Are

This movie is a beautiful, visceral, dead-on portrayal of the way childhood feels. Its emotional tone is so powerful and deep-rooted in the experience of being young, you almost can’t view it through your adult brain or process it as a story. It’s nearly impossible not to experience this film as a nostalgic, heartbreaking, and oddly comforting sense memory. Max, a 9 year old boy whose parents have recently divorced, is having trouble coping. He feels unheard, unsupported, unable to cope with all of the sadness and anger inside of him, and powerless against the world around him. He lashes out when his mother tries to quiet him or reign him in, and has a hard time finding comfort in or camaraderie with his mother and sister. When his mother invites a man over for dinner, Max refuses to stop acting like the wolf whose likeness he sports on his onesie. They fight, and Max, filled with rage and fear, runs away through the suburban night…until he happens upon a boat at the edge of a lake. Of course, he gets in, and sails his troubles away.

He ends up on an island inhabited by The Wild Things, a diverse group of friendly but outwardly intimidating creatures, who soon make Max their king. The friendships he forges, the power he exerts, and the lessons he learns in leading the Wild Things allow him to, finally, begin to understand himself. His ability to create and thrive within a world all his own helps him discover ways to cope with his reality, and eventually, he doesn’t need the guidance of the Wild Things anymore.  He leaves the island, returning home with new perspective, a sense of empowerment, and better understanding of his place within the world.

Especially avoid if: Your childhood trauma is still relatively fresh, or you have wounds that are easily reopened. EVEN IF NOT, you won’t be able to stop yourself from crying all the different kinds of tears, from the wild rumpus starting to a Wild Thing telling him, “Please don’t go; I’ll eat you up, I love you so.” If you’re going in emotionally vulnerable, you’re guaranteed to be out of commish the rest of your visit home.