Movie Analysis: A Perfect World - Essay Example

Movie analysis: A Perfect World Introduction The movie; “A perfect world” covers issues that affect the society in terms of behavior and character development. The life of the two convicts escaping from the prison in order to enjoy freedom and the capturing of the young boy as a hostage is the major focus of the play. The movie depicts the failure of the society and the penitentiary to handle and shape the behavior of the convicts. Robert “Butch” Haynes and jerry Pugh are the main characters in the movie. The casting of the two characters is done by Kevin Costner and Keith Szarabajka while the eight-year boy Phillip Berry is T. J. Lowther. The three characters are used to reveal major issues in the society and the impact of environment in changing believes of the people and character. Berry is a brought up in a staunch Jehovah Witness set-up, which makes him appear as captive in the movie with the hostage situation helping to define a new world. The world developed by Butch is different from the beliefs of Berry which includes the existence of freedom of choice and ability to party and enjoy celebrations. Such celebrations include Christmas and Halloween which Berry did not know. The life of the hostage and Butch leads to better understanding of the movie by encouraging the display of the family background of the Butch. In addition, the event that led to the arrest and conviction of Butch is brought in to light in his behavior towards the hostage Berry (Costner). The initial thought of hostage involved abuse, but latter Butch and Berry develop a father and son relationship, which is exhibited in the protection offered by Butch. He protects Berry against molesting by his escapee partner and exhibits the power of choice and change in behavior. However, the life of Butch ends in a tragedy. The character of Butch The prison break by the two convict lead to the creation of a negative notions about the two convicts. However, the character of Butch is later depicted in the relationship between him and the hostage which leads to the creation of a loving character of Butch. From the movie, it can be argued that Butch was not a bad person as depicted in the start of the movie when they escape from the penitentiary. The protection of Berry from the molesting and attack from Pugh illustrates virtue in the life of Butch. Butch states that the abuse from his father was the major cause of the murder he committed in the past. In order to protect against abuse, Butch murdered his father and the crime led to his imprisonment. However, the desire to protect young children against having the similar experiences is depicted in the protection given by Butch to Berry. Despite giving Berry the freedom of choice and participation in various activities, Butch takes care of him and protects him exceptionally. Despite the ability to show reform, society is not ready to accept a convict back into the society leading to a tragic end of Butch’s life and illustrates the power of perception on the society. After sharing his life experience with the black farmer and witnessing how the black farmer mistreats his son, Butch becomes annoyed that the black farmer does not protect and treat his son fairly. The reaction of Butch indicates the need to take care of the children. It depicts that the failure to protect children or treating of children negatively will lead to the development of negative behaviors. These behaviors lead to the incrimination and jailing of the children in later life. The arrest and conviction of Butch is an example on the power of upbringing of character development. The cognitive development of a child is based on the ability to relate well with the parents and society. The development of the necessary character depends on the upbringing and the development of social attachments with the parent. From the research conducted, several findings have been received, which include the evaluation of the parent’s welfare and emotional health. The effect of the parent’s emotional health on character development of the child is evident in the case of parents suffering bipolar identity disorder. Additionally, single parent families affect the child’s development especially when dealing with the development of relationship with the opposite sex (Ruiz, 2008). The wellbeing of children in single parent families is affected by the mental status of parent. For Butch’s case, the father was abusive leading to murder as a form of defense. However, the judiciary did not understand the cause of murder and imprisoned Butch. Despite the challenges in the society on the justice issues, the character of Butch is not affected by the imprisonment and is depicted in the relationship between the hostage and him. Therefore, the character of Butch is not violent but a caring and understanding man. Social injustice in the movie The movie depicts several injustices of the society which includes the judgment of Butch which depicts poor understanding of the family situation. The failure to address the family issues that affected the life of Butch is illustrated of the movie by the behavior of the people surrounding him. Culture and tradition have entrenched beliefs and social controls that are not scientifically supported. In fact, some of the issues that generate social control may be a fallacy and not real. Several social issues exist that may differ from reality, but are practiced as a formality, or as entrenched by culture. Religion plays a role in dictating the values generated in the process leading to a complex idea that cannot be eliminated despite the existence of data proving the notion wrong. The upbringing of Berry was shaped by religion until the encounter with Butch which led to better understanding of the world by Berry. However, the attack by Pugh on Berry illustrates the social injustice in the society that must be addressed in order to have a safe society. Both attacks by Butch were based on need to protect rather than harm the aggressor. However, the society does not accept the power of aggression or abuse in shaping the behavior of individuals. The circumstances that lead to events is not addressed effectively because of social controls. Murder is viewed a massive social ill that needs utmost punishment. However, the circumstances that led to the murder are not addressed. In the case of Butch, child abuse was not addressed that led to the death as a result of self-defense. In order to understand events, it is vital to illustrate the power of understanding of the various situations and the tendency of the situations leading to violence. The action of Butch was not evaluated using the same premise leading to the development of the movie. Berry’s case is different from Butch’s because of the upbringing. The upbringing of Berry leads to the fixed perception on life, which is changed by the action of the two escapee convicts. Butch helps Berry to develop the new understanding of the world. In the final episode, the attachment with Butch is depicted when Berry goes back to hug him before the tragic end. In conclusion, social injustice is depicted in the story with utmost accuracy. The title a perfect world is an irony of the events depicted in the movie. The movie depicts the unfairness and challenges that exist in the world. In fact, the life of Butch is a testament of the inequity in the world. The life of Butch is filled with challenges including the unfair judgment offered by the justice system and the societal perception which includes negative thoughts about convicts and suspicion. The level of suspicion is depicted in the treatment of Butch in the farm. In the scene, he is shot because he is perceived as to be withdrawing a gun from his pocket which is not the case. The story line does not depict the title but it shows irony in the setting and behavior of the characters. Butch perceived as a hardcore criminal, but his behavior illustrates a different understanding of the situation which includes the character of caring and understanding. While living with the hostage Berry, Butch illustrates his true character that is different to the perceived one. Despite living with the hostage positively, he cannot blot away his sin of murder and is revealed by how people treat him after knowing his true character and history. The title depicts the inner desire for a perfect and fair world which is not depicted in the environment surrounding the main character. The major challenge of the movie is on the ability to link the events in the movie and the title presented. However, the title of the movie perfectly fits into the plot because it illustrates the existence of the need to have a perfect world but the reality of reaching the point being very far from the ideal. In spite of the differences, the reality of unfairness is depicted in the movie through the treatment of Butch by individuals within the society. Conclusion The creation of films in the twentieth century was based on several issues that affected the society. The crucial issue depicted in the film was the creation of the crime movies with the depiction of human behavior as complex and not easy to be comprehended. The post war films reduced the use of cinematic scenes and increased use of reality approach in film. However, the films handled issues affecting the society in a conclusive and elaborate way (Elsaesser and Buckland 90). Many script writers developed films based on crime and other social evils. The major focus of the films of the era was on violence with the depiction of the society as the major casualty in the process. The development of the films was a way of confronting the traditional moral values with the hope of elaborating or discrediting them. The major role of the films in the era was to establish new values in the society. The vital value depicted by the films was the need for peace and coexistence. The film; A perfect World is not different because it captures the social evils in the society by addressing issues of family and upbringing. Butch’s character is shaped by the events in his life which leads to the creation of negative event. The judgmental nature of the society is depicted in the pay through the actions of the people and highlights the power of wrong perception in shaping the behavior of the members. Consequently, the case of Butch and the farmer is a clear indication of the power of perception on action and acceptance. The farmer does not accept that Butch is a changed man leading to serious challenge and death. In conclusion, the title of the movie is ironical based on the plot and the behavior of the characters. The desire for a perfect world is depicted through the behavior of Butch. Works Cited A Perfect World. Dir. Clint Eastwood. Perf. Kevin Costner. 1993. Film. Elsaesser, Thomas and Warren Buckland. Studying Contemporary American Film: A Guide to Movie Analysis. Chicago: Arnold, 2002.Print. Read More