Under Pressure

I recently purchased a movie called It's Kind of a Funny Story, a film that came out last fall; I had not seen it previous because it never made it to the theater in town. Despite this, I figured I had good reason to buy it because: a) it's a Focus Features film, and I have never yet been disappointed with any of their films, and b) the movie is based on the excellent book of the same name by Ned Vizzini, and I couldn't fathom it being a bad movie (even if it ended up not being a good one, either).

Much to my excitement, the film is wonderful. It captures Craig's spirit in so many awesome ways, and really does justice to the original source material. I feel that they really tried to get creative with the way they filmed it, unafraid to try something a little different or be a little silly. There is an incredible amount of humor in the film--and it's not in any way disrespectful to the setting or the issues addressed in the story. It was the book brought to life, and boy, is it good.

I could go on about the movie all day because I love it so much, but I just wanted to talk about one particular part that surprised and pleased me to no end. During one of the sessions Craig attends as part of his stay in the psychiatric ward, he is encouraged to get up and take on the main singing part in the group's effort to play Queen and David Bowie's "Under Pressure". It is--pardon the language--Kick. Ass. Not only is it pleasantly unexpected and delightfully entertaining, but it also reflects Craig's journey as he finds his way through his problems. It may seem strange out of context of the film, but rest assured, it fits perfectly with the rest of the story.

Granted, Craig connects more directly to the brainmaps he returns to later, but I feel that this is one of those defining moments for his character in the film. It's a small step toward conquering his issues.

Plus, as Olive Pendergast of Easy A would put it, it doesn't hurt to have an awesome musical number for no apparent reason.