Living by the ABCs
The resonance of ‘The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’ (2013) in an era of uncertainty
“Uncertain times,” “unprecedented times,” “a new normal.” These are just a few of the phrases that have been used to describe the last few years — an era dominated by a pandemic that shut down much of the world, geopolitical uncertainties, an economic downturn, the great resignation, and the accompanying personal challenges that most, if not all, of us have faced.
Amidst all this, it is easy to feel that life is passing us by — history is being made all around us, but we are mere witnesses to the passage of time as it flows forward incessantly, leaving us (and vast damage) in its wake. Everything is changing — how can we be expected to adapt to all of it?
Ben Stiller’s titular character in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty faces a similar crisis — his workplace is transitioning from physical to digital, effectively eliminating the need for his specific talents; his crush, Cheryl Melhoff, barely notices his existence; and his family are going through transitions and challenges of their own as they move homes and attempt to win an important role. His coping mechanism at the start is to disappear into a world of daydreams (the only major piece taken from the original story by James Thurber — which took a much more cynical and pessimistic outlook than the feel-good nature of this second film adaptation of the original work) where he is able to control the situation and bring main-character energy into his life.
However, his already non-idyllic world is thrown into further chaos when he loses an important photograph negative. Having already been told that he is being laid off, finding this photograph becomes a personal mission and last hurrah — not just a part of his day-to-day job, but a journey of redemption and self-discovery that takes him to exotic and picturesque locales where he has a series of experiences that change his personality and attitude towards life.
The movie is, in the words of Peter Debruge of Variety, a “feature-length ‘Just Do It’ ad,” but in the midst of this relentless positivity, the movie carries some great messages for those of us who sometimes feel overwhelmed enough by the real world to disappear into a world of dreams.
It’s about finding our purpose
“To see the world, things dangerous to come to, to see behind walls, draw closer, to find each other, and to feel. That is the purpose of life.” — Walter Mitty, quoting Life’s motto
At times of crisis, it’s easy to feel small; to imagine that our lives are meaningless, and that we do not matter. Walter Mitty faces exactly this — his role as a Negative Asset Manager is something that people don’t even understand, and even his dating profile is considered too bland by the customer service representative he connects with.
In one of my favourite scenes from the movie, Mitty (an expert skateboarder in his youth) shows Melhoff’s son tricks on the skateboard while she is blissfully unaware of the skills he is demonstrating. This scene encapsulates the flaw in Mitty’s pessimistic perception of himself — something that many of us may have been guilty of as well — just because his talents are unseen, does not mean they will not be appreciated, or even prove essential, when they come to the fore. The skateboard later plays a pivotal role in his quest to retrieve the photograph, as he jets across the pristine Icelandic landscape — a full-circle moment.
Even his role, that of a Negative Asset Manager, exemplifies exactly this. He does most of his work hidden away in a basement, away from everyone else — and yet, the publication is effectively entirely dependent on him for their cover. Mitty needs Cheryl Melhoff and photographer Sean O’Connell to affirm that his blend of skills, experiences, and relationships have helped him discover a form of ikigai — a Japanese concept that states that one’s purpose is derived from a combination of what one loves, what one is good at, what the world needs, and what one can be paid for. Finding our ikigai, however challenging it may seem — may still be easier than knowing that we’ve found it.
Everyone needs encouragement to go into the unknown
“Life is about courage and going into the unknown.” — Cheryl Melhoff
Walter Mitty’s quest to retrieve the missing photograph forces him to leave his workspace, and travel out into a world of volcanoes, icy oceans, snow leopards, and much more. However, as is reasonable — taking the leap requires a fair amount of encouragement. Mitty draws encouragement from covers of Life magazine (imagining himself as some of the great men and women featured on the cover as he runs past), Life’s motto, a dating app customer service representative who eggs him on, from a desire to impress Cheryl Melhoff, from an innate sense of duty, and (in a pivotal scene) from David Bowie’s Space Oddity.
The song is earlier used in the movie to mock Mitty’s daydreaming, as his new manager tries to attract his attention by reciting the “Ground control to Major Tom” line. The song returns, ironically, as one of the last dreams that Mitty has over the course of the movie — a final moment where his dreams and reality come into sync, and he transforms into the action hero he always dreamed of himself as. “You’ve really made the grade,” Bowie’s voice affirms to Mitty as he (both literally and metaphorically) takes the leap and finds the courage to go forth into the unknown.
It does not matter where we find our encouragement — be it a song, someone’s words, or our own desire to prove something to ourselves or someone else. We have inspiration all around us, and finding that inspiration is crucial to, as Bowie sang, “leave the capsule, if we dare.”
Living in the moment matters
“If I like a moment, for me, personally, I don’t like to have the distraction of the camera. I just want to stay in it.” — Sean O’Connell
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is not just a feel-good movie — it’s also a visual masterpiece that juxtaposes beautiful unpopulated Arctic landscapes, the hustle-bustle of New York City, and the visions of Walter Mitty. At the start, Mitty’s visions are far from his prosaic reality — but once he sets off on his journey, his dream world and reality combine until the boundaries disappear, made possible by the wondrous landscapes and situations he finds himself in.
Intense worry about the future, or even the past, often clouds our view of the present. Mitty is stuck in this paradoxical rut until he finally goes through this series of carpe-diem moments, and realizes the beauty of his present reality — again, with some guidance from his photographer friend Sean O’Connell.
In many ways, building that comfort with the world around us is crucial to finding peace in times of uncertainty. We are all interesting people, but familiarity with our own life may breed contempt — it’s no surprise that others often think of our lives as more interesting than we do ourselves. Reality can sometimes be more fantastic than our dreams — but we need to live in the moment to see it; and sometimes, we need to remember that dreams are just reality before we have made it happen.
