Life, Animated (2016)

As must be clear by this point, I relate to the world through movies, they help me connect to others and understand the world around me. Animation holds a special place in this, especially the Disney canon. There was a real sense of recognition and connection watching this film which is about this very thing for another human who also finds connection in this way. To see yourself reflected back, to see others have a similar experience, is one of those parts of the human experience that makes us feel whole. For me seeing Owen find his way through his passion, a passion which relates so closely to mine, was powerful for me.

Autism remains quite poorly understood amongst neurotypical folks. We are only now starting to understand that autistic people may be experiencing the world in a way that is as valid and rich (but different) than the way neurotypical people do.  We have a long way to go to seeing value in people who don't live the way we expect people to live.

Life, Animated is a story made by a father, of how he began to see his son for the full person he was. After being told over and over how less Owen's life would be, his family began to see that just wasn't true. He would live his life differently than they would but that was okay, no, it was more than okay.

There has been some criticism by those who feel the film minimizes what the experience of Autism is, that by focusing on this one way Owen connects is reductionist. The film never prescribes watching Disney movies as some sort of cure. It shows how this one man has funneled his passion into living a full and rich life. How is that not exactly what most self-actualized people do?

Life, Animated is told from the point of view of Owen and his dad, the people who live it. It's not told from the perspective of outsiders. It is their story and they get to set the terms for how it is told.

Life, Animated is a love letter from a father to a son and it's incredible beautiful. Especially for those of us who love films, animated films, Disney films, this is wonderfully affirming. But for others it will also be awakening. There are moments when some people will speak about the autistic/average person divide in a way that is condescending but what I found so admirable about the film is the way it eschews that and proposes that perhaps we're still seeing it incorrectly. Autistic folks are living in a predominantly neurotypical world and therefore are in a position, like many other non-conforming folks, of having to live in that world. But it doesn't mean they need to become like others. The film purports perhaps we all should be living in the way that fulfills who we are, instead of trying to be what the world thinks is normal.

And that is the most beautiful part of Life, Animated.

Life, Animated
Director: Roger Ross Williams
Writer: Ron Suskind