Collateral

Last night I watched Collateral with a good friend. I thought that I had previously seen the movie while playing poker at a friend’s house last Christmas. When the movie started I was surprised that Jada Pickett was in the movie--and that's when I realized that my first viewing really didn't give it justice. I know understand why Jamie Foxx was nominated for an Academy Award for his portrayal of Max. He did a wonderful job of helping us understand the character and the depths of his disillusion with himself. Cruise's character, Vincent, helped Max see that in fact Max had been holding his own life hostage by not truly going after his dreams; he had been stalling thinking that he's just figuring out the details. The most powerful scene was when Max sped the taxi through downtown LA as he realized that someone else was now holding him hostage and in fact he had no control. A great example of showing how doing foolish things things in life really don't help your situation. So what does this mean for me and for anyone else that tries to actually learn something from the movie. Maybe we should end our own disillusions and face death in the face as Max did on the subway car. I think that he had the shootout with Vincent not to save his own life or even Jada's life but he wanted to do something extraordinary. He wanted to show that he wasn't afraid and that his character had been transformed and no longer lived in a fantasy world. We all have our own disillusions and I don't know what it will take for us to face them. Will we find ourselves driving a taxi for 12 years chasing our dreams or will we today step in front of the day and kill the very think that's holding us hostage.