Movies and their Stickiness Factor

The endless summer heat seems to have sapped my energy to do anything other than sit on my bottom all day, hunched in front of the laptop and browse through an exhaustive list of movies and TV shows till the pleasant evenings arrive. Just recently have I finished "Mega mind"- a fun filled movie. Seeing that blue-skinned, bowling ball head of a man finally save the day, rather than ruin it, really made me think of what catches my interest in movies.

Sure, the script, sets (or quality of animation), storyline, the actors, direction and all those iddy-bitty parts that go to make a movie DO matter. But, what STICKS to me the most are well- the characters and what they do.

Think about it, when you are done watching a good movie (or even bad movie for that matter) and would like to reminisce about it a little while later, the first thing that props up into your mind would be your most liked (or even disliked) character and how he/ stirred you up while watching the movie through their various actions. Take for example, Neo and his epic, otherworldly fight scenes, or take Mega mind's bumbling attempts at being the good bad guy; or even Captain Jack Sparrow's flamboyant attire and his carefree, jovial way around things. One of my favorites however, is The Shawshank Redemption's Andy Dufrense. A man who made the best of his situation- he was always taking bright initiatives towards making his hell hole of a prison into a bearable place for himself and his inmates. Setting up a library, helping the inmates reach a high school education, collecting old records for a music library was just the tip of the iceberg with this man. His determination and downright shrewd planning was legendary. In fact, it was such qualities that I badly wanted to possess really left an impression on me.

A lot of characters are worth remembering too, when you can actually RELATE to them. Many youths can very closely relate to Taare Zameen Par's Ishan Avasti as part of their repressed, troubled childhood. We could even consider movies such as "Lakshya" and "Wake up Sid!" project the image of the confused youth who does not know what to do with his life, who hasn't found his true calling yet. This is a problem faced by many young people of my generation and sure enough, people even get a nudge in the right direction from such movies.

All in all, movies are fun to watch and offer the occasional nugget of wisdom. Just remember that the next time you enter a theater for a flick, you are definitely going to let someone from the silver screen into your being who will leave a lasting impression on you. Who knows, you just might have found a new role model or a new friend or that tiny amount of inspiration you needed to get back on your feet and do something worthwhile. Good night and good luck!