Reel Life

Ever since I was a kid, a "good" movie always had a clear definition: one that made you think something you hadn't thought before, and one that made you want to be part of it; as the protagonist or one of the leads in some of them, or just a curious observer in others.

Growing up, try as I might, I still can't rid myself of that second definition. In fact, the only that has changed with the passage of time is the level of detail I can create around a world which, in the reel world, offers little information out of the ordinary. It's childish, and maybe the vicariousness of it all is slightly depraved, but it still keeps one of the nicer things about movie-watching intact: that there are people in this world who have a similar pattern of thought.

The latest flick to afflict me in such a way was The Perks of Being a Wallflower. A lazy evening with not much to look forward to the next day resulted in an uninterrupted watch, one of the more memorable ones lately. And even though I have never had quite as much to deal with, haven't been quite as thoughtful in falling in love for the first time, or been quite as good a writer, there was still that tiny corner that made you want to be part of that universe where there was unstated understanding among friends and an ability of everyone to contribute.

It's a good movie; one of those that makes you wonder what you're doing with your life in a world where people make so much of theirs.

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