By JOHN CARTER JR.
Who is your favorite fearless hero? Is it a legend like King Arthur? Is it a superhero like Superman? Or is it maybe a fairy-tale creature, say a big green ogre? What is a hero? What does it mean to be fearless? What does it mean to be courageous?
Throughout our lives, we are confronted with circumstances that make us reconcile the answer to these questions with ourselves, often without verbalizing the questions themselves. Do we fear death or do we fear never truly having lived before we do?
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish confronts these conversations with gusto, style and heart. Directed by Joel Crawford the newest entry in the Shrek expanded universe does not disappoint and is probably the best entry since the second Shrek film – The same film that introduced our titular protagonist. The film defies all sequel odds by not only being a perfect film but having an important conversation about life, death, why the time we are given is not guaranteed and why it is so precious.
The film, starring Salma Hayek and Antonio Banderas, is gorgeous. The color and art design not only benefits the story being told but it is simply exquisite. Every color in the rainbow is here and is all used in just the right amount for just the right occasions. This film looks to stand the test of time as an artistic wonder and its Latin-inspired musical score is equally timeless. The film never runs out of delectable imagery for the audience to eat up. It only serves its role in supporting the narrative concerning the beauty of life and the finality of death.
Through the main protagonist and newcomer Perrito, the film tackles the hard-to-discuss mental health topic. In the final act of the film, our main protagonist has a panic attack, which is deeply moving and intense to see. According to the American Psychological Association, a panic attack is “a sudden onset of intense apprehension and fearfulness in the absence of actual danger, accompanied by the presence of such physical symptoms as heart palpitations, difficulty breathing, chest pain or discomfort, choking or smothering sensations, sweating and dizziness. The attack occurs in a discrete period of time and often involves fears of going crazy, losing control or dying.”
The film captures what panic attacks are, how scary they can be and how they can affect any of us. The sound design in this scene perfectly displays that. It shows us even the bravest among us can be scared. It shows us we all need friends and family who can help us through difficult times and dark moments and, if we only take a step back to breathe, we might be able to find a little peace.
Death is something that scares us all; it is something coming no matter what, and there is nothing we can do to change that result. Puss In Boots: The Last Wish teaches us even with that inevitability, life is still more than worth it. Our one life is the most important thing worth fighting for. To cherish the time we have been given is to be brave against life’s greatest fears and afflictions. To be brave is not to be void of all fear but to have the willingness to stand up to it. To be brave, to cherish and to love the little time you’ve been given with the people you love that is the point of living even when it all seems futile.
Puss In Boots: The Last Wish is an excellent marvel in animation and storytelling. It is perfect in its storytelling, its art design and color. Most important is the masterful way in which it conveys its mental health message and its themes concerning death and why we should never give up on the life we have been given. The film teaches us about bravery and what it truly means to be brave. It shows us Puss in Boots is not our favorite hero because he is fearless. He is our favorite because he never gives up even in the face of death itself.
I give Puss In Boots: The Last Wish a 10/10 for being perfect and an inspiration to the anxious.