“The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”

Honestly, I feel torn about “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”. On the one hand, I knew what I was getting into when I sat down in the theater: it’s a feel-good movie to round out the year, it’s very well shot, and pleasantly acted. In fact, the romantic in me really wants to buy in to what “Walter Mitty” is selling, and actually finds it quite charming. However – and maybe I’m a jaded old curmudgeon inside – if I apply even a modicum of critical thinking to the plot, that feel-good sensation vanishes like one of the titular character’s numerous fantasies. It’s a hipster’s dream, but a nightmare for everyone else. “Walter Mitty” presents a world where the corporation – nay, progress itself – is the enemy, quirkiness and providence can be relied on to solve every problem, gun-toting warlords can be bribed with cake, and where the thing you’re looking for has been inside of you all along (in this case almost literally, not to mention groan-inducingly obvious from the get-go), all set to the sounds of Arcade Fire, Of Monsters and Men, and Junip. In fact, the whole plot is predicated on Walter being a half-wit and Sean Penn’s character displaying tendencies that wouldn’t seem out of place in a slasher film. “Walter Mitty” means well but let’s face it, if either of them had been anything close to resembling rational human beings with even a hint of common sense then Walter’s entire journey would have been completely avoided. But, of course, it’s not about his physical journey, is it? It’s about self-discovery, looking photogenic while traveling abroad, being inherently cooler than the drones around you, and your fantasy of proving how much better you are than your corporate day job – if you only had the drive to act. (See you at work tomorrow.) [6/10]

Alternative Rating (Spoiler Below!):
On a somewhat sinister note, the film’s dreamlike narrative, coupled with Walter’s tendency to zone out, makes me wonder if the events of the film even happened at all. It could be that, after the final fade out, we find Walter sitting in the negatives room, boxes piled up around him, pink slip in hand, having been fired without ever setting foot outside the office; his hunt for Frame 25 having never even begun, and the woman of his dreams gone without more than a few awkward exchanges to connect them. Like Schwarzenegger’s “Total Recall”, we may never know whether what we saw was real for the characters or just a dream, but that’s the ending I like to imagine. That movie gets an 8/10.