We Can Get More from Movies than Just a Few Popcorn Kernels

Movies have greater purposes than just mindless entertainment. I believe that we sometimes use movies to say things through the characters that we have wanted to say, but for some reason have held back. When the characters say them, we get a feeling that we're not alone and that the truth the speak is universal. Take, for example, one of Wesley's lines in The Princess Bride- "Life is pain, highness. Anyone who says different is selling something." We all know it's true. I don't care if you're the poorest person or the richest millionaire, we have all experienced much pain in our lives, some more than others. Yet, for different reasons, we push past that fact. We think that if we just preserve a bit longer, strive a bit more, the pain will go away. And yes, sometimes it lessens. But the pain of our lives never completely go away. Yes, we find joy, sometimes that is even greater than the pain, but that's the thing: it's greater than. It doesn't replace the pain we feel.

Another quote that has resounded in my heads ever since I first saw the movie came from The Count of Monte Cristo. One of the very first lines spoken, Napoleon says "In life, we are all either Kings or Pawns." There are several variations of this- we are all either leaders or followers, we are all either users or are being used, but essentially, it all boils down to the same thing. If you're not willing to lead in your life, somebody is going to lead you.

"Death has a way or rearranging your priorities."- This is a line spoken by Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. The movies are not made to be taken too seriously, and all in all, Jack's character is a humorous one, but for me, this one line is just the most profound thing to come out of movies in recent years. We all know it's true, but yet, no one ever comes right out and says it. This movie does. Of course, we all react to rearranging our priorities differently, but the bottom line is, we rearrange them somehow.

There are many different quotes that have inspired me from movies, but I have to say these are the top three. I unfortunately don't get to watch movies very often, but when I do, I get very involved, which often leads to people asking me questions about why I care so much about the fictional characters. But the thing is, they're not entirely characters made from lies. A great deal of how they think, act, and say mirrors what we think every day.