Wolfe Wednesday

January 18, 2012

And the winner is…well I’ll leave that for a little while from now but today I’m revealing the movie I’ve quoted for the last couple of weeks. Now movies and I are kind of a strange relationship. The ones that grab me are not horror, or drama, or sci-fi necessarily. I swore off horror movies long ago after watching Halloween (the original) as a babysitter in college. I was babysitting not far from my dorm so I walked to and from the house. BAD MISTAKE  to make  after you’ve just watched Halloween. I boogied my way home scared out of my wits. Uh, uh no more horror/slasher movies for me!

Movies I am attracted to are movies that speak to me deeply. They make me think and stick in my head for a long time after watching them. Most movies and tv shows I forget almost right away after watching them. Sad I know but memories for me are attached to emotions. This one has stuck with me for a couple of years after I watched it.  And the winner is…Mr. Megorium’s Wonder Emporium. Yes, it’s silly, implausible, and totally sappy but you know what the quotes if you think on them are profound especially Mr. Megorium’s good-by to Molly.

Mr. Edward Magorium: [to Molly, about dying] When King Lear dies in Act V, do you know what Shakespeare has written? He's written "He dies." That's all, nothing more. No fanfare, no metaphor, no brilliant final words. The culmination of the most influential work of dramatic literature is "He dies." It takes Shakespeare, a genius, to come up with "He dies." And yet every time I read those two words, I find myself overwhelmed with dysphoria. And I know it's only natural to be sad, but not because of the words "He dies." but because of the life we saw prior to the words.
[pause, walks over to Molly]
Mr. Edward Magorium: I've lived all five of my acts, Mahoney, and I am not asking you to be happy that I must go. I'm only asking that you turn the page, continue reading... and let the next story begin. And if anyone asks what became of me, you relate my life in all its wonder, and end it with a simple and modest "He died."
Molly Mahoney: [starting to sob] I love you.
Mr. Edward Magorium: I love you, too.
[picks Molly up, sighs heavily]
Mr. Edward Magorium: Your life is an occasion. Rise to it.

That’s what I want people to say about me when I die. She died. Nothing more nothing less but I want them in that simple phrase to imply that I lived first. That my life, somehow made a difference to the speaker and helped people along the way. This movie is a utter delight to watch. It’s full of magic and wonder. The final message of the movie is that all anyone needs to succeed is for someone to believe in them beginning with the person’s belief in themselves.