Three Movies about the Self

In short order, the Mrs. and I saw three movies about the same thing, more or less. Penelope, Wanted, and Kung-Fu Panda all three deal with becoming who one really is.

The first, Penelope, is the story of a curse woman, born with the snout of a pig, to pay for the sins of a previous generation. Only when one of her own kind loves her til death do they part will the curse be lifted. It is a well told tale with many classic elements of a fable, done right.

The second, Wanted, is eye candy of the violent sort. It has several commendable qualities, and I wanted to like it. But it relies too heavily on the myth of redemptive violence to set things right for my taste.

Kung-Fu Panda is a joyful romp of an animated movie. The voice casting is brilliant, the animation incomparable, the humor, action and comedy well timed and well done.

So I can clearly recommend the first and the last highly. The middle one not so much.

All three have clear statements about what it means to be oneself in a world that so wants people to be the conglomeration of other's opinions and what we assume about ourselves.