the prisoner
Hello
When I was a kid there was a cinema in Dingle, the small town I grew up in. I felt lucky to have that place because it was somewhere to escape from:
a) the weather and
b) other people.
One film I watched many times was the Shawshank Redemption. You might know it. It was based on a novel by Stephen King, I was surprised to learn later on, but anyway it was about an accountant, a guy, who was wrongly accused of murdering his wife and sent to prison.
I loved the film and everything in it, including the corrupt warden, the violent prison guards and - hoping that you haven't been holding out to see this film - the eventual escape of Andy Dufresne into a new life after many years of incarceration. I went to see it several times over the two weeks it showed at the Phoenix Cinema.
Just the other day it struck me why I liked that film so much. For me it was about the Mind/the ego, whatever you want to call it. I was imprisoned in my own mind, falsely accused of being useless and a failure (my own self-talk). The negative self talk was the threatening prison guard, keeping me in my place. The corrupt warden was my conscience, whose job it was to keep me feeling bad and guilty, whilst maintaining the prison walls as high and impenetrable.
The prison escape itself was the eventual freeing of the Andy Dufresne, his taking the initiative. Because there would be no justice for him 'out there' he had to take a massive risk, believe in himself and bide his time. The feeling I used to get watching that film was physical and so powerful and I can still feel it now, 28 years later! I am grateful that I took heed, bided my time, found (and continue to find) ways to escape the mind and am always working towards a place of 'justice' for who I am in the world. That might sound big headed or something but it makes sense to me, as someone who for so long felt like I had nothing of value to bring to the world through being myself.
We all, no matter how weird or 'outsider' we feel, have a place, a Nature, that belongs in this world, even if our own experiences and mind states tell us otherwise.
Tell me about your inspiring film experiences!
Love