posted May 19, 2007 09:43 PM              

Wherever you are, and no matter you get to read this message or not, I am still going to say- thank you, in any event.

I'd like to thank you for recommending the film "What Dreams May Come" last summer here at LL, right here on this forum. Had it not been your recommendation, honestly, I must admit- I may never get to watch the movie myself. Even though I had heard of it, but if you hadn't given that very piece of advice, I might just miss this one for good.

I had already posted some of my feedback to you at that time. However, I feel that there's a little bit more that needs to be said.

You mentioned pure love, and the sacredness of pure love, as well as the tragedy of the loss of such pure love.

I believe "What Dreams May Come" might just teach us the priceless value of love, and of course- the priceless value of life. As I said at that time, the film is profoundly moving. It is heartbreaking, gut-wrenching, riveting- but the story also gives us hope. The message it attempts to convey, is hope- and the power of love. True love, pure love...can overcome anything. True love, pure love...make miracles happen.

The moment Robin Williams' character, Chris, is struck and severely injured...(I am trying not to be a spoiler for those who have not seen the film)...is a heartbreaking moment. I see a beautiful soul, a precious life being abruptly cut short. That very moment...and while Chris is lying there, his soul struggling between the realm of the living mortals, and the realm of the astral...is overwhelming.

I remember when Chris has gone to Heaven, he is so overjoyed, so happy. Not because he is dead, not because he is free from the burden of the life on Earth...but simply because Heaven is so beautiful, and it makes you feel good, just good. He shouts out at the top of his lungs, ecstatic, as if this is his declaration- "Annie (his wife)! I LOVE YOU!"
With such a smile on his face...it's a smile of fulfillment, a smile of love, a smile that's saying "I love you".

Annie had been struggling to cope with the deaths of her and Chris' two young children prior to Chris' death. Now Chris has passed away. Annie has been in much, much pain, much agony. She commits suicide.

(I've noticed that I am really being a spoiler now- shame on me!)

When Chris has learned the terribly tragic death of his beloved wife, you can see his facial expression, you can see he is shocked, and totally heartbroken. Shattered. But then, there is a ray of hope coming his way, and Chris asks, with a tiny, little smile, as if grasping for hope- "When can I see her?"

But then, something entirely unexpected, something even more shocking and tragic, is being spoken to Chris, by the angel figure, Albert (Cuba Gooding, Jr). You can see on Chris' face, why he is astonished, awe-struck and deeply saddened. It is because of love. It is because, Chris loves her, Annie. Because of this love.

I recall that I did quote the following lines in the movie; I did so because I found them powerful. You see, when Chris' spirit comes to the forlong and woeful Annie, who has lost all her family- her daughter, her son, and now, her husband, everyone in her family, everything- so sad, in such despair. She can't hear Chris, but Chris is trying. He is trying to let Annie know, and yet with such powerlessness and frustration because he cannot be heard. I can feel that pure love as Chris whispers to Annie's ear "I still exist! I still exist..."

It feels like he was trying to say to her "I still exist...and I love you. Don't you know that? I love you. Don't give up on yourself. You think I'm gone and I am no more, but I am still here, with you, by your side..."

"...Don't think I am gone and I am no more, so you want to go, you want to leave this world as well, and you don't want to exist. You think there's no point in living, since everything is gone. But it's not. I am not. I am still here, with you. Right here, with you. If you let yourself go, if you die now, if you end your own life now...it will be you who leaves me, who abandons me, who attempts to go against the way of the universe."

"...The truth is, you never stop existing. What's eternal life? What we are experiencing right here, right now, is eternal life. You can't escape anything you're trying to escape. You can't escape life, and you certainly cannot escape eternal life. If you kill yourself now, you will not cease to exist. It will not be so simple as you wish it to be. You will still exist. You will always be. And you can never stop existing. You can kill your flesh body, perhaps, but not your soul. You have an immortal soul. You can't kill it. You have the legendary eternal life right in your own hands, and perhaps it's both a blessing and a curse, but it's a curse only when you perceive it as eternal pain. More to the point, it is rather a blessing, because life cannot be all painful or all numb- where there is the yin, there is the yang. And a shadow can never be cast without light. You may be capable of destroying your flesh body, but you will still exist, and the plain truth is, you will have to face even more painful consequences. This is not a threat, just a fact."

And finally, true love, pure love, conquer all.

Love, hope...make a miracle happen. And that does not only exist in films. That's life. This life.

Thank you, Astro Junkie.

I will remember your sense of integrity.

posted May 19, 2007 10:55 PM              

Me, too. That is a beautiful movie, and a very, very meaningful one