I’m sure we all remember the movies we watched as kids and how they made us believe in a world where everything was going to be okay at the end of the day. If you live and breathe nostalgia like me, these movies are still in your rotation.
But whenever I watch these movies as an adult now, I realize how easily we used to accept these happy endings without questioning them. The character overcomes the demon they’d been fighting, whether internal or external; the lost character finds their way back home; the hero wins against all odds.
And, in that moment, the world is entirely good. As kids, we never thought of these ideal endings as unrealistic. In fact, they felt like the most natural thing in the world. Yet, as adults, these same endings now feel like some unrealistic fantasy.
When did we become so cynical about life?
As we grow up, the rose-tinted glasses of childhood fade into complicated reality, showing us what the world is really like. We discover the tough truths of life, and the happy endings that once made us dream start to feel further away than ever.
When adulthood starts hardening us—our souls, hearts, and minds—a perfect world where the hero saves the day begins to feel cheesy, predictable, and impractical. And how could it not? We live in a world that manages to get harder every day.
One where injustice and suffering surround us, where people have to fight for the most basic rights, where people have to prove themselves every day, where hardship is the norm. Who could blame themselves for feeling so pessimistic and despairing when it’s so hard to look around and find joy?
But isn’t that exactly why we need the raw joy of children’s movies more than ever now? So, we can allow hope to bloom in our hearts again?
It’s not just the happy endings that allow us to believe and dream of a better world again; it’s the journey the characters take to get to them. At the very core of these movies lies the message of perseverance.
Each story shows us, in its own way, that while things may go terribly wrong and obstacles may arise, there’s nothing that we cannot overcome when we believe that we can. The very idea for this article came to me as I was watching Monsters vs. Aliens a couple weeks ago, and it serves as the perfect example of perseverance.
On what’s supposed to be the happiest day of her life, Susan Murphy is struck by a meteor and literally transforms into a giant monster. She loses everything she dreamed of and is suddenly treated as this frightening entity. However, she doesn’t just get to have her old ideal life back.
Instead, she discovers that the version of herself that she is forced to become is her biggest strength. When she saves the world from an alien invasion, she finally overcomes her inner doubts and realizes her true worth, which has nothing to do with her size.
She discovers that the version of herself that she is forced to become is her biggest strength. When she saves the world from an alien invasion, she finally overcomes her inner doubts and realizes her true worth, which has nothing to do with her size.
Take Finding Nemo for another great example. Marlin starts the movie by losing everyone he loves, with Nemo remaining as his only family. Ever afraid of losing his son, Marlin’s worst fear comes true when Nemo is taken. Marlin crosses the entire ocean to find his son and eventually reunites with him in what might be a scene that will always bring me to tears.
However, during his journey, Marlin also learns that loving someone also means accepting that you have to let them go and learn on their own. He realizes that life is not promised without loss or danger, but he cannot let that consume him and, consequently, Nemo.
In the end, he finds the courage to live and love despite the pain and fear. So, yes, the all-perfect endings may seem unrealistic at first, but when we consider that the characters in each of these stories must overcome the roadblocks that they face to reach their happy endings, it sounds a lot like the lives we lead every day. let them go and learn on their own. He realizes that life is not promised without loss or danger, but he cannot let that consume him and, consequently, Nemo.
While it’s easy to let the harsh realities of the world turn us into cynical realists, it takes effort to hold on to hope. Reconnecting with childhood classics is just one way to do that. After all, what are we without hope? It’s what keeps us going, what makes life bearable despite its thorns, and what makes us believe that we will all make it sooner or later.
So, I urge everyone reading this to seek hope in their daily lives. Whether it be in how sunlight kisses the leaves as they change colors or how Dorothy clicks the heels of her ruby slippers to wake up to the safety of her own bed in Kansas, surrounded by her loving family and friends.
In my opinion, hope is what makes life worth living, so embrace it shamelessly!