Editor’s Note: This article contains spoilers to “The Kiss of the Spider Woman” and “The Life of Chuck.” Grace Chaves is a third-year journalism major and The Point’s opinion editor. The opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of The Point.
“We made it, my love,” Valentin whispered as he breathed in the scent of his lover’s bandana — the only thing he had left of him. Valentin raises it in the air as others greet their loved ones outside of the jail where they were once prisoners.
“Come on, little sister,” Chuck said to a wide-eyed red-headed girl. “Let’s dance.” The two dance along to nothing more than the beat of a drum, as dozens of pairs of eyes watch them twirl and glide.
On Oct. 15, I saw “The Kiss of the Spider Woman” and “The Life of Chuck” a few weeks before that. They are two very different movies, but they taught me the same thing: Dreams are still beautiful and worth pursuing even if they’re temporary.
“The Kiss of the Spider Woman” is about two cellmates, Valentin (played by Diego Luna) and Molina (played by Tonatiuh), who are imprisoned in Argentina — Molina for sexual allegations and Valentin for being a political activist. Molina copes with his imprisonment by telling Valentin about a movie he saw as a child starring the fictional actress Ingrid Luna (played by Jennifer Lopez). The romance in the film foreshadows the blossoming romance between Valentin and Molina, but their story comes to an untimely end.
“The Life of Chuck” chronicles Chuck Krantz’s (played by Tom Hiddleston) journey through life and his love for dance. The movie begins with his death and closes by showing his life as an accountant in adulthood and his childhood as a dancer.
I desperately wanted Chuck to become a full-time dancer as an adult. I wanted Valentin and Molina to escape prison and live happily ever after, but life took them to separate places.
And maybe that’s OK — maybe the filmmakers were onto something. Because how lucky we are if we get to love someone or something, even for a short time. Love changes and heals our lives. Dreams are the fuel that make us who we are.
If it weren’t for dance, Chuck may have become angry and bitter at his parents’ deaths. Through this art form, he was able to channel his emotions as a child. Although it couldn’t become his career, dance still found ways to bring joy into his life, even for a short time.
If it weren’t for the romance between Molina and Valentin, perhaps neither of them would have ever experienced real, true love.
Valentin undergoes the most character growth throughout the film. His fear and anger about his imprisonment change as Molina’s kindhearted nature opens Valentin to the possibility of love with this person he shares this living hell with. Their romance distracts from their painful circumstances, and Molina goes from seeing himself as a monster to finally being loved for who he is.
Their love was only temporary. Their love turned to grief. But even in these losses, the filmmakers prove that loving something even for a short while is worth it. Pursuing your dreams could change your life, even for a moment.
Maybe we need more movies where the guy doesn’t end up with the girl, where the job application gets turned down, where the family doesn’t get their picturesque cabin in the woods and the love interest dies. I think the best movies are the ones where things don’t go our way, because they’re closer to reality. Life isn’t always going to go our way, and that’s OK.
Life will have grief, and though the end is in store for us all, maybe it’s all of the temporary, fleeting things that make life so rich. No matter where life takes us, we are dancing along to the great symphony of the universe. We belong in this corner of time and space for however long we’ve been given.
As the stars begin to come out and Chuck walks home, “The Life of Chuck” narrator says:
“Later, he’ll lose the ability to chew food. Later, he’ll forget his wife’s name. Later, he’ll lose his grip on the difference between waking and sleeping and enter a land of pain so great he will wonder why God made the world. What he will remember, occasionally, is how he stopped and dropped his briefcase and began to move his hips to the beat of the drums. And he will think that is why God made the world. Just that.”
Perhaps the beauty of temporary things is, indeed, why God made the world.
Olivia Roberts