I've been watching Where the Wild Things Are and i think it affected me so much because it appealed to the child that i am-- not simply the story i loved and the big, fascinating-looking monsters, but the intensity of emotion and the inability to do anything with it. The sadness and fear that manifests itself in anger; the need to be close to someone but also not to let them know they're important to you; the utter panic of learning that something you clung to for stability would someday die. It made me think of when my grandma died; my mom's family was torn apart and couldn't seem to find the maturity to admit they needed one another. They just wanted their mommy.