Hey everyone! Welcome to Blog 2 of this journey. People, at some point in their lives, feel lost, and this is something we can’t avoid. You may say, “No, I have never felt that way,” but sometimes. You are unaware of it, and it’s entirely fair; we don’t judge here. But not knowing what to do or where to go is horrible. It usually happens when you don’t feel happy with what you are doing, lose something or someone you were attached to, or feel unmotivated, but it is not always like that.
So many ways to drive you to get lost; in this case, we will get in touch with life because sometimes life sucks, and it’s okay to talk about it. Feeling lost in life is depression’s little sibling. Being unmotivated can be a real challenge, and some movies demonstrate how difficult it can be.
- Soul (2020)
(PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE CONTINUING SPOILERS BELOW: If you are interested in watching the movie and don’t want spoilers, please skip this part until you get to watch the film, also no spoilers on the comments, or I will be forced to delete your comment. Thank you!)
Yes, I started with an animated movie, and what. Soul is a Pixar movie released during the pandemic directly to Disney +. It is the story of a man chasing his dream called Joe Gardner. Joe was a music teacher in a public school obsessed with being in a jazz band just like his father did. His mother, on the other hand, was against his dreams. She just wanted him to get a stable job and live a good life.
One day, Joe finally gets a chance to play the piano on stage with one of the best jazz players in the city, Dorothea Williams, and an old student he used to teach in high school. Exiting that he finally had a chance, he walks in the street without looking and has an accident that kills him. He goes to the great beyond, where all the souls go, but he refuses to die and runs away. As he runs away, he meets a curious girl called 22, a soul that doesn’t want to go to Earth. 22 helps Joe to get back to earth, but in the process, she accidentally gets trapped in Joe’s body, and Joe’s spirit ends up in a cat’s body. While in that… situation, 22 meets the world and realizes it is not as bad as she thought. She believes that she has finally found her purpose in life and wants to stay in that body, but Joe gets mad at her, and 22 becomes a lost soul. Joe is finally able to return to Earth for his great night, and after that, he realizes that it is not as he thought it would be. So, he returns to the great beyond to find 22, and after he apologizes to 22, she finally goes to earth, and he decides to live his life as he must.
So, how do “Getting lost” participate here?
There are two sides here, one is Joe’s, and the other one is 22’s. Let’s start with Joe’s side. A dream blinds Joe, so overwhelmed that he does not see the good things happening in his life and how lonely he has become. He had to die to see what he was missing in life. This is a pretty standard way of getting lost in life too. Joe didn’t know how to balance his dream and everyday life, and when it happened, the expectations of it got so high that it could be disappointing for some of us. Now let’s talk about 22; she was the only soul with years without a purpose, as they call it in the movie. 22 represents people who always wonder what their goal is but don’t care about it until they explode.
- The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)
(PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE CONTINUING SPOILERS BELOW: If you are interested in watching the movie and don’t want spoilers, please skip this part until you get to watch the film, also no spoilers on the comments, or I will be forced to delete your comment. Thank you!)
The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a book adapted into a movie in 2012. The main character Charlie an introverted kid narrates the story of his first year in high school while dealing with two deaths of important people in his life. One is his best friend in middle school and his favorite aunt, who passed away on Christmas Eve and Charlie’s birthday. He calls himself a wallflower as he feels invisible to everyone. But while he was in school, he wrote letters to a “friend” who we don’t know who is at the moment. The only clue they give us is that the letters always start with “Dear friend” and end up with “Love always, Charlie.”
He meets two people that become his best friends, Sam and Patrick. Charlie starts to have a massive crush on Sam, while Patrick gets to something with the school’s quarterback. The school year seems to become better, but not Charlie’s life. He starts getting flashbacks from his aunt, and the last night he saw her making him feel guilty about what happened. So, he searches for help in his friend group. Little did he know that something was building inside him that could change his life. Charlie has anxiety episodes because Sam, his aunt, and his friends leave for college. He ends up in a mental hospital, realizing that his aunt sexually abused him and manipulated him. At the movie’s end, Sam and Patrick return to town to visit for a little while, giving us that fantastic tunnel scene with David Bowie closing the film.
So, how do “Getting lost” participate here?
Let’s talk! First, the movie touches on the symptoms of PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder)
in a teen. This disorder develops in people who have experienced big traumas such as losing someone important, abuse, or a dangerous event that marked a moment in their life. Charlie feels guilty about his friend that committed suicide and his aunt that had a car accident. Charlie feels guilty because his aunt is going to buy his Christmas present. And then it gets worst. His best friend, crush, group of friends, and sister are graduating and going away to college, so this causes the PTSD to get even worst than it was already. The movie touches on many other psychological events, but we will discuss them in another blog.
- The Kings of Summer (2013)
(PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE CONTINUING SPOILERS BELOW: If you are interested in watching the movie and don’t want spoilers, please skip this part until you get to watch the film, also no spoilers on the comments, or I will be forced to delete your comment. Thank you!)
We have all been teens; even as adults, we sometimes want a break from reality. Just leaving without responsibilities, rules, or societal rules for some people. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the Kings of Summer. Joe, a fifteen-year-old, is tired of living under his father’s roof because of how they treated him. Since his mother’s death and his sister leaving the house, the relationship with his dad wasn’t the best because he was controlling and wanted everything his way. Tired of it, he decides to run away with his best friend since childhood Patrick that also have problems with his parents as they are overprotecting and controlling him, and run away together to the woods. On the way, they encounter a new group member, Biaggio, a weird teen who got lost in the woods while walking back home. With Joe’s architectural abilities, they find a spot in the middle of the woods where no one can see them and build a house. They enjoy freedom and independent living under their own rules while learning to survive with some books Patrick stole from the town’s library. Everything was okay until Joe invited his crush to his new house to impress her. But everything turns badly when his crush falls in love with Patrick instead of him, creating a big fight and separation between them. Ultimately, the group learns how important family is and appreciates them. So, their parents found them, and each of them returns home. Or that’s what I thought because, in the post-credit scene, we can see Biaggio return to the house to be there on his own.
So, how do “Getting lost” participate here?
First of all, it is a film that I am sure a lot can relate to. Sometimes when you are a hormonal teen, being bossed around is not fun; it even happens as adults sometimes. That involves frustration and the feeling of being in prison. Parent, I know I am just a girl behind the computer writing a blog about a movie. But let me tell you something for you to keep in mind; not trying to tell you how to raise your kid or anything, but the more you pressure your kid, the more possibilities they do something like this. Returning to the subject, Joe is dealing with a loss, and his dad is, too, clearly; none of them is up to talk about it. What this does is overwhelmed both sides until one of them explodes. Joe is feeling lost and overwhelmed; that’s clear to everyone. The movie shows how a person can make you feel lost by making you think your actions are wrong. If you are someone that feels like your parents are pressuring you too much, they do not do it with an evil intention because they want the best for you.
Well, this is it for today, everyone! I hope you enjoyed this week’s blog as much as I wanted to write it. I already have social media and am excited to post and connect with whoever reads this. Also, as I said in my last blog, I will start posting on Tuesdays instead of Sundays (Don’t forget to check it up). You all have a great week, and I will see you next Tuesday.
Cinema by MD 
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