There’s movies that you watch and think, “Huh, not bad.” You maybe post about it on your social media because it’s popular at the moment, you mention it to your friends the day after and then it quickly becomes one of those oh-yeah-I-watched-that-a-forever-ago-but-I-don’t-really-remember-it-that-well movies. Once a decent way to spend your time but now nothing but a distant memory.
And then there are movies that make you sit and think in silence while the credits roll, movies that live with us, within us, movies you swear by and recommend any time the opportunity presents itself. A movie that you’ve watched more times than you can count, a movie that still makes you notice something new every time, a movie that opens discussions.
The Children Act is that movie for me. There are few really strong favorites I have in my life, but there is nothing I preach quite like that masterpiece. Based on an equally brilliant book by Ian McEwan, it is a beautiful story that encompasses everything that’s great about movies.
Isn’t it boring to be able to predict who the good guy is and who’s the villain? Or know exactly how the story plays out not even halfway into the movie? To be told whose side to take and be comfortable knowing that the guy gets the girl and the superhero saves the world? Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like I don’t enjoy those movies or think people shouldn’t like them or consume them, not at all. I am also not always in the mood for a heavy and depressing drama and prefer to just laugh and distract myself with a good comedy at times. But if I was to name a movie that made an impact on me, that made me think long after it finished, a memorable movie? None of those would come to mind.
My mom is the one who introduced me to the world of good cinema and so the first time I watched The Children Act was with her. I remember staying in our seats and talking after the movie was over, talking on our way to the car and all the way back home, talking about it even days after, until we eventually rewatched it and repeated the cycle a year later. I was completely taken aback by some of her opinions. How could we have watched the same film and yet have such differing experiences? I was conflicted and I didn’t trust myself. Did I miss something? Did I not understand something? I knew how I felt and yet my mom’s opinions didn’t seem wrong. What was this confusion that I felt? Was I wrong in the way I judged the characters’ actions?
A good movie, I realized, will make you feel this way. It reflects reality in the complexity of its characters and relationships it portrays. It makes you reflect on your values as you watch it through the lens of your own experiences and relationships you’ve formed. And that’s why it’s so interesting to watch and discuss good movies with others. Humans aren’t all good or all bad; we are everything in between. We have all done things right and we have all done things we wish we could change; we are all unpredictable and a little bit broken. It’s hard to judge someone’s actions not knowing what they’ve been through and why they reacted a certain way, but it’s even harder to judge them if you do.
In the end, it’s not about right or wrong, it’s about learning about yourself. And so, as I grow older and wiser and I notice my mindset and reactions to The Children Act change, I realize that a good movie doesn’t tell. It asks.
About the Author
Maja is from Slovenia, and she is a junior at the Department of Architecture in Korea University.