Louisa Andrusko-Blog 15-KPAX-4/19/11

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the film K-PAX. The question “Who or what is Prot?” kept me intrigued and guessing the entire time. Labeled insane, Prot is committed to the Psychiatric Institute of Manhattan where he meets psychiatrist Mark Powell. The struggle for power between these two men lasts the entirety of the film as they try to diagnose and understand one another. A medical man, Mark wants concrete answers from Prot who continues to defy the rules of reasoning over and over again. On the other hand, as the father and husband of a murdered wife and daughter, Prot wants to understand how Mark cannot appreciate his living family. Prot’s assertion that there are no families on K-PAX is one of the many ways in which he grieves over the loss of his young family. Even though this film deals with aliens and the definitions of insanity, the movie is ultimately about family and the importance of it.
Language is also an interesting theme in the film. One of the first things Mark notices about Prot is his eloquent speech and profound insight. Ironically, no matter how well Prot speaks or how intellectual he sounds, Mark will not be satisfied until Prot verbally reveals his own insanity in some way. Mark is constantly prodding Prot to give him verbal insight into his fragmented past. Still, their drastically different understanding of Prot’s past hinders this task. In the end, Prot loses his ability to speak, the one tool he had to interact with people.
Further, the misinterpretation or misunderstanding of languages also results in tension between the two men. Prot uses the phrase “You humans” throughout the film when he does not understand the actions or phrases of his foreign counterparts. Interestingly enough, the alienation of Prot allows him rare insight into the actions of humans that are considered normal and habitual. As a result, he is able to investigate and analyze human relationships and actions in a way sane or “normal” people cannot.
Ultimately, Mark and Prot learn a lot about one another, as well as themselves, through their relationship and interactions. While attempting to label people as sane or insane, Mark lost sight of seeing people as simply human beings. Prot helps Mark regain that human connection and saves Mark’s marriage. In the end, Prot is the one to help Mark.