Have you thought about the lessons about self-image and finding meaning in life in the movie Birdman? Birdman is a thought provoking film that leaves a lot open for interpretation. Bloggers and writers have asked many questions about whether the main character, Riggan Thomson, played by Michael Keaton, has super powers or what really happens at the end of the movie. Although these are interesting questions, what I found most compelling about Birdman is not what has happened or what is real, but what the film says about the psyche of a wounded actor and the drive that many of us have to find meaning in life and our self-image.
Thomson was clearly striving to prove to others and himself that he was a not a hack actor or sellout. Rather, he was an actor with substance, not a trite action hero. Thomson wanted to be larger than life. He wanted to fly, as he did in his fantasies, and have the masses stare at him in admiration. The approval and admiration of others, he believed, would make his life meaningful.
Seeking Self-Image from Others in the Movie “Birdman”
To a certain extent, on a continuum, seeking affirmation and approval is a need we all have (Kohut, 1971). However, seeking self-image from others is something we see in the movie Birdman to a large extent. Thomson’s character was starving for affirmation. Why was he so hungry for this? Thomson’s ex-wife suggests his flaw was that he confused admiration and affirmation with love. Strangers can admire your work, your appearance or performance, and say, “I just love that actor.” We hear this all the time, and say it about people that we have never met. Is that love meaningful? The problem with Thomson is being hyper-focused on seeking affirmation can be very lonely. When you are focused on solely hearing the roar of the crowd that doesn’t know you, you may feel a certain rush, but the curtain always closes.
Self-Image and Life’s Meaning
Thomson tried to kill himself on several occasions throughout the film, maybe because he never truly felt alive, maybe because he never felt truly loved. To a certain extent by killing himself his hope may have been to live forever and to be loved forever. At the end of the film it is left unclear, it is possible he achieved fame, but is that what it means to be truly loved? Is this really the meaning of life? Is this this the way to create self-image?
The late relational analyst Stephen Mitchell suggests admiration and idealization are just aspects of a loving relationship. Particularly, when what is idealized coincides with what we want admired. As mentioned, a desire to be admired is not necessarily a problem. However, what happens when the desire overrides everything else? As the myth of Icarus illustrates, there are hazards of trying to fly too high. Did Thomson try to get too close to the sun and fall from the sky or can we still see him if we look up to the heavens? Additionally, if he is up floating in the clouds above everyone else, I wonder how he feels — full of meaning and purpose or isolated and alone?
References
Kohut, H. (1971). The analysis of the self: A systematic approach to the psychoanalytic treatment of narcissistic personality disorders. Madison, CT: International Universities Press.
Mitchel, S (2002) Can love last: the fate of romance over time. New York, NY: W.W Norton.