Ben X overall review 500 words

           Ben X was one of the absurd films that I’ve watched. We watched this clip covering 2 classes, and the feelings I felt was quiet different between 2 classes. First half was sympathetic, and the other half was embarrassing. Overall, it just felt like I haven’t flush toilet after excretion.

           At first, the clip began as if it’s dealing with some online game addiction problems. Clip started with the log on screen of certain online game, and simultaneously, one haggard boy’s playing was shown. So, naturally I thought ‘Oh, the contemporary issue about online game addiction among teenagers.. Quiet cliché I think, and why Mr. Garrioch’s showing this clip to us?’ Even until the shot that Ben, the boy, is taking psychological counseling, I thought it was dealing with the game addiction.

           Ben, the boy, is suffering from the autism. I don’t remember the exact name of it (though the doctor said that it’s something autism, which seems it’s the detailed branch of autism, but maybe not that important), but it seemed quiet critical to his life. Since he has autism, he’s got few problems that threaten his social life. For example, he barely speaks to his friends, which make him to be an outsider and being bullied by so-called friends. Not only his communication skill, he’s easily distracted by the sounds of his surroundings, even to the sound of a clock ticking.

           Considering this is faction, I wasn’t able to understand the Ben’s parents (though they seemed to be divorced). Why they keep his son to be suffering from the normal school? Why they won’t let him go to special school? Why they are letting him to play the online game whole day?

           Before the meeting of his imaginary girlfriend, I just criticized parents, teachers, and his friends. But after the meeting, I just thanked his parents to let him to play the game. Though it’s imaginary, with his girlfriend, his minds were able to be stabilized. With this happy development, I felt comfortable, with the feeling of sympathetic washing away.

           However, I was extremely embarrassed when he committed a suicide on ferry. He seemed to be happy, but he installed a camcorder to record the moment of his suicide, and he fall down to the deep sea. So, when I saw it, I thought he realized the truth, the truth that his girlfriend is imaginary which means he lost all his hope on the earth, so he committed suicide.

           Surprisingly, more embarrassing moment was waiting for me. He wasn’t actually dead. It was a fake; he just fall down to the first floor of a ferry, not into the deep sea. It was just to pull out the sympathy from the deep inside of their (teachers, friends, acquaintances) hearts. More surprisingly, it was all his ideas. He brainstormed, planned and executed. Whatever, with the successful plan to take sympathy out from the heart, he and his family settle in the rural.

           Since the ending was so unpredictable and unlikely, also very urgent, I just thought that this absurd ending came out from the lack of the director’s ability. He took more than he could handle. Thus, the ending seems very abrupt. Well, since Ben’s having melliferous moments with his imaginary girlfriend inside the film, I don’t have THAT much negative view over the clip. But still, the abrupt ending and some unexpected (but to the negative meaning) moments seem to be the minus point for the movie. One word summarize: I liked it, but not so much.