The movie begins with an over achieving boy named Leonard (Robert Deniro) who didn’t stray too far from the norms, as he had friends, hobbies and many other activities young boys engage in. However, Leonard fell victim to a chronic disorder which caused muscle to become catatonic due to deficiencies within the brain causing him to be unresponsive to the world around him. This, however disheartening, gave way to a peculiar relationship between Leonard and the researcher, Dr. Malcolm Sayer (Robin Williams), who was assigned to the ward 30 years after Leonard fell into his catatonic state. This relationship would in turn prove to teach Dr. Sayer more than anyone would have expected.
Dr. Sayers area of expertise revolve around the area of research and lacks the human interactions required by most doctors, however due to many qualities such as being quite nurturing, shown through his delicate care with his plants, and his inability not to give up in the face of adversity showed that he too can impact other’s lives. Dr. Sayer belief that many of the patients still have the capability to recover from this affliction lead to the recognition of encephalitis as the cause of many of the catatonic patients which lead to the introduction of the L-DOPA drug which in turn stimulated areas of the brain and bring patients back to their previous state before the incident.
Leonard saw the effort put forth by Dr.Sayer affirming his kind heart, yet Leonard couldn’t see why people were so caught up with their lives that they tend to neglect the little things that will indeed make them happy. In Dr. Sayer’s case he spent the majority of his time in the hospital working for the better of other people yet neglecting his own desires such as relationships, friendships or even a life outside the hospital. This is best symbolized through the hospital window Dr. Sayer continuously looks out on to the outside world depicting that he is the one who is trapped behind bars even though he is free to leave anytime. Only after his witnessing Leonard’s innocence does he learn that everything he ever needed was in front of him and will always be there, from the friendships he gains with his patients and colleagues, potential relationships and of course the ability to do enjoy whatever he has got no matter how small. Unfortunately the L-DOPA effects became less effective which lead to Leonard and the other patients falling back in a catatonic state but as the process was slow Leonard wanted Dr. Sayer to learn from him, not just for the purpose of potentially benefiting the other victims but also to learn from his ability to enjoy all the things he couldn’t for 30 years and are generally taken for granted (walking in any direction). The Awakening was not just for the patients but also for Dr. Seyers new outlook on life.
psy317jacobwilliams 
Leave a comment