BenX Final Review

          This movie reminded me of one of my classmates Woojin. I was in 3^rd grade back then. Woojin had autism but he enrolled in classes with “normal” or non-autistic students. Sometimes he showed aggressive attitudes toward other students without any reasons. When he threw his desk, we get to rest a little during in the middle of the class so that the teacher could make him calm. Although the teacher told us to be friendlier to him because he was special, we just could not do it while getting hit by his fists. Regardless of his will, he was isolated from his classmates including me. In the end, he moved to different schools. What should we have done for him and for us?

           The movie can be divided into two parts. The scene where Ben was saved by Scarlite is the midpoint because that moment is the turning point. Before that scene, Ben’s real life was constantly compared with the life in the game. These comparisons are visually presented. As an example, when he walked to his school, his image appeared in two different ways: actual and virtual images. Also when Ben tried to use his weapons, the similar situation in the game appeared right before he took out his cross. But after he met Scarlite, those visual comparisons disappear completely. Not a single item box appeared in the screen.

           These visual changes intended to show how Ben changed so that he could solve his problem at status-quo. Before he met Scarlite, he was constantly comparing himself with the identities in the real world and the virtual world. At the beginning of the film, he mentioned that he only sees a “jerk” in the mirror which is totally opposite to his avatar that has the highest level. The difference between two worlds makes him frustrate because there is a huge gap between what he thinks he can do and what he can actually do. However, after he meets Scarlite, he no longer resorts to the computer game. He gets to accept himself and realize how he really is in real life. With her, he managed to devise a plan to surprise everyone and change them to care more about people that are nearby.

           Then what is the answer? In the movie, Ben successfully managed to solve his situations but this kind of dramatic scene can only come true in the theaters. Personally, I believe the ending is half success. This movie succeeds because it really brought up the autism to the public. After watching this movie, it gives audience a time to think about the issue and how to do something about it. Along with raising up some important social issues, its happy ending gives people some hope that there might be a solution for this. However, this movie also has little problems in some areas. To begin with, how the movie wrapped up is so unrealistic. The idea of devising such plan with an imaginary girlfriend is absurd. This is not a realistic solution for autistic people to pursue. Of course, this is not a major issue because the movie's goal is not to present an answer but gives chance to people to think about things that they have never thought about.

           One thing that came to my mind was that the existence of Scarlite really played important role in reforming Ben’s behaviors and attitudes. She functioned as a haven for him who explains why he became so confident and optimistic compared to his gloomy past. So for the autistic people, we have to share the role of “Scarlite” so that autistic people can actually adjust to the society without getting much pain. Collaboration would be the solution that we should be patient and understanding for those people. Maybe, if I had taken my hands toward Woojin, he might not have transferred to a different school.