I'm you and you're me

I love watching movies at home.

I often watch movies when I feel like I need a little nourishment for my soul.

Recently, I've started wanting to encounter works that remind me of things important to human beings, rather than just watching movies for entertainment.

Today, I would like to translate and introduce a scene from a movie I watched recently that really touched my heart.

The title of the movie is "The Duke".

It is a film released in February 2022, based on the true story of the theft of Goya's masterpiece "The Duke of Wellington" from the National Gallery in London in 1961.

Here is the masterpiece "The Duke of Wellington" that was actually stolen ↓.

The person who stole the masterpiece was Kempton Bunton (60), a British pensioner.

He is the protagonist of this film, a man without much financial leeway.

Despite being dismissed by those around him, he continued his campaign for free public broadcasting for lonely pensioners and veterans based on his own convictions, and even went to prison several times for refusing to pay the license fee.

I will omit the plot developments for those who haven't seen it yet—why he stole the masterpiece and what fate awaits him—but I would like to introduce it because it is a wonderful film that will make you shed a tear while also making you chuckle.

Bunton's grandson, who was involved in the production of this film, says this:

“My grandfather believed that television was something that could soothe the loneliness of pensioners.
At the time, there wasn't much else for people who were isolated and feeling lonely besides television.
He understood the value of the BBC (public broadcasting) and believed that it should be accessible to everyone who needed it.
This action played a part in the movement to make television license fees free for pensioners.”

In the first half of the movie, everyone is probably exasperated by this "unsuccessful man for whom nothing goes right," and feels a bit disappointed, but as the story progresses, you realize that your view of this protagonist is changing more and more.

Many of the film's famous lines are in the courtroom scenes, and it is said that many of them are direct quotes of Kempton Bunton's own words.

I will quote here the passage that left the biggest impression on me during the courtroom exchange with Jeremy Hutchinson, who defended Bunton.

*******
Kempton Bunton:
“Without you, I am not me. Do you understand?”

Jeremy Hutchinson:
“You mean we all need each other?”

Kempton Bunton:
“No, you are me.
It is you who makes me 'me,' and it is I who makes you 'you.'”

Jeremy Hutchinson:
“So humanity is a single collective.”

Kempton Bunton:
“Look, on my own, I'm a single brick.
A bit useless.
A single brick is of no use at all.
But if you stack a lot of bricks together, you get a building.
If you build a building, you always create a shadow.
And the world has already changed.”

Jeremy Hutchinson:
“Your philosophy. I think it deserves to be called that.”

Omitted

Kempton Bunton:
“To use modern terms, things like 'isolation' or 'not being connected' are no way to live.
In other words, what you grandly call my philosophy, 'I'm you and you're me,' teaches us that every time someone is cut off from others, the lifespan of this nation, this country, is shortened.”

*****
The following is the original language (English).

Kempton Bunton*
“I'm not me without you. Do you get me?”

Jeremy Hutchinson:
“We all need each other?”

Kempton Bunton:
“No, you are me.
It's you that makes me “me” and it's me that makes you “you”.”

Jeremy Hutchinson:
“Humanity is a collective project.”

Kempton Bunton:
“Look, on my own, I'm a single brick.
A bit useless.
What good is a brick on its tod?
But you put a load of bricks together, you get a building.
You build a building, you create a shadow.
Already you've changed the world.”

Jeremy Hutchinson:
“Your philosophy. I think it earns the appellation.”

(…)

Kempton Bunton:
“And “isolation” or “not being connected”, to use the modern lingo, is no kind of life.
So, what you grandly call my philosophy, the "I'm you and you're me" thing, tells me that every time someone gets cut off from the rest of us, this nation, this country becomes a foot shorter.”

*****

Of course, it is not all a beautiful story.

The excuse that "I was only borrowing the masterpiece temporarily" is truly heartbreaking, but I am simply amazed by the unexpected turn of events.

In 2000, 40 years after this incident, television licenses for those aged 75 and over became free in the UK.

When I finished watching this film, what covered my heart was a sense of respect for human kindness.

Beyond the captivating performance and charming lines of Jim Broadbent, who played the protagonist, I felt that the protagonist's astonishing clumsiness, deep compassion for the weak and minorities, bonds with his family, and above all, his unconditional love for his children, were the source of the beauty emanating from this work.

*********************
Metaphysics is what resolves the question of why the world is so often unfair and unreasonable. Learning about metaphysics might change your perspective on this movie a little bit.