I’m not a regular moviegoer, but this is the time of year when my family has lots of downtime (think school vacations), so we always see a movie or three during the last few months of the year.
Sunday, we saw Doctor Strange, a sci-fi fantasy flick with a moral takeaway appropriate for all ages, and especially relevant in today’s world.
The movie tells the story of an arrogant surgeon (played by Benedict Cumberbatch) who loses the use of his hands after a car accident. A search for a cure leads him to a fantasy world inhabited by sorcerers using magical weaponry in a battle to save the earth. Doctor Strange learns how to wield the magic, helps protect the earth, and is successful in finding a way to “heal” himself.
In one scene, when Strange is saying goodbye to his dying teacher, she scolds him yet again for his arrogance, saying it had kept him from the learning “the simplest and most significant lesson of all.”
And that lesson? “It’s not about you,” she says.
Not surprisingly, Strange remain a superhero and works for the common good rather than for his own gain.
Arrogance and fear blind many of us, superhero or not, and it is a valuable lesson to learn that thinking about yourself less doesn’t mean you are thinking less of yourself.
In the end, you just might save the planet.
Michele (Nuttle) Babineau can be reached at mnuttle@ledgertranscript.com.