Understanding the Self Movie review TITLE: PATCH ADAMS CHARACTERS: Robin Williams as Patch Adams Daniel London as Truman Monica Potter as Carin Philip Seymour Hoffman as Mitch Bob Gunton as Dean Walcott Josef Sommer as Dr. Eaton Irma P. Hall as Joletta Movie Summary: As the movie starts, Patch gets himself into a mental hospital because he is suicidal. As a patient in a mental hospital, he learns that his mental health is improved more by helping other patients like Rudy, his roommate, than by treatment from doctors. Then he realized what he wanted to do in his life, to help more people. He enrolls in medical school and decides to pursue a career as a doctor so that he can help others. He manages to be at the top of his classes while spending most of his time at the hospital making the patients smile and laugh. Additionally, he met Truman, who later became a buddy, and Carin, with whom he formed a close relationship. To serve those without insurance, they create their own clinic. Unexpectedly, one of their patients killed Carin. Patch was devastated and depressed, he felt responsible for Carin's death because earlier on he told her to trust the guy. He left the clinic, walked to the top of the hill at the back of the clinic, and was about to jump to his death when a butterfly flew over and landed on his shoulder. Carin previously gave a speech in which she talked about how she wished she could fly away and be like a butterfly. He therefore reconsiders his decision after seeing the butterfly and restarts his efforts to help others. As he returned, he granted the patient’s last wish: to dive into a pool of noodles. Everyone cheered and was happy for his return. Patch was about to be kicked out of the medical school because his professor, Dean Walcott, was against his way of treating people and said that he was being unprofessional. Patch is able to persuade the board that he must take care of the patient's spirit as well as his physical needs. He is given a standing ovation by the packed hearing room after the board approves his graduation, despite the fact that they still find some of his tactics to be quite unconventional. Reaction: I initially thought the movie was dull, but as I keep watching it, I realize it's not. I became fascinated since it opened my eyes to all types of people and illnesses related to mental health. My heart was warmed by how much effort Patch puts in to just understand each person he meets. I gain a lot of understanding about people and learn a lot by viewing the film. Upon seeing Patch, I am reminded of my goals. I have a constant desire to be able to help others, especially the homeless. I want a good degree because I want to be successful enough in the future to be able to provide for them. I'm more inspired and want to be like him since, like him, I get a sense of fulfillment out of making other people happy. The scene when Carin died makes me feel shocked and sad. I can’t believe it. I can’t accept it because she doesn’t deserve it; she just wanted to help. From this scene, I learned that we can’t just trust people because, even though our intentions are pure and good, some people still do bad things to us. Therefore, always be careful when selecting people we trust. Additionally, seeing the characters of the professors, Dean Walcott and Patch Adams, represents two types of people. Dean Walcott is the kind of person who focuses on being right. While Patch Adams focuses on being kind, many people can always choose to be right, but not everyone can choose to be kind. Being kind represents how good a person you are and how you understand people. So for me, I’ll always choose to be kind rather than right. Kindness comes naturally from our hearts. Overall, the movie was great, and there were a lot of lessons to be learned. It is inspirational and will give you mixed emotions. In this world full of chaos, let us be like Patch, who, no matter how many times he has been on the floor, always stands up again and continues fighting as a person who is full of hope.