If you enjoy movies that feel like warm soup on a winter evening, Peanut Butter Falcon is just the right one for you.
It is about a guy named Zak with Down syndrome who runs away from a nursing home to achieve his dream of becoming a wrestler. Having no idea how to do so, he conveniently comes across Tyler who is on a journey of his own and tags along with him. It’s an easy watch because there are not many notable characters to begin with. Apart from Tyler and Zak, we have Elanor who volunteers at the nursing home and is a good friend to Zak.
Although Tyler is reluctant about Zak initially, he adopts him along the way. Infact, he gives him little pieces of life lessons whilst helping him train for the wrestling championship. He does not see Zak as a burden, nor a regret. Most importantly, he does not treat Zak like a retard. A beautiful relationship blossoms out of mutual respect and acceptance.
Both the protagonists feel like an outcast because of the way they live their lives and I feel like that was a common ground for them to grow close to each other. There is an amazing dialogue in the movie, which goes like, “There are sheep in this world and there are wolves in this world. Neither of you are wolves. You’re just sheep that strayed from his flock.” And I thought that is a very good way of conveying that just because you’re different or do different from your crowd, doesn’t mean you belong to a different crowd altogether, which I guess most of us feel like at some point in our lives.
If I was not clear enough, what I enjoyed most about the movie was the bromance between Zak and Tyler. It’s wonderful how sometimes you just meet someone out of the blue and they end up being such an integral part of your journey in life. They teach you so much and give you so much hope to move forward and achieve your dreams, while being beautifully flawed themselves. To all the Tylers who have played such a part in my life, as Zak would say, I’m going to give you all the wishes for my Birthday!