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Essay On Skip The Youth

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Obligation and Love in Skip The Youth

Collin Blair's short film Skip The Youth provides a realistic and emotional portrayal of the relationship between a mother and her son. This relationship is complicated by the presence of the mother's ailing health. The two main characters have different approaches in dealing with this issue and what is shown through unfiltered language and joking remarks is the gripping inevitability of having to say goodbye. It's a film about coming to terms with letting go of a loved one. Sometimes that means actually resisting having to say goodbye while also trying to fulfill the obligation of putting their wishes before your own concerns.

The language in this film is not glossed over as is the case in …show more content…

One of them is when the mother confesses a regret for her son. She thinks she should've pushed him more to have a life outside of taking care of her. She wishes he had more friends, perhaps so that she would have the consolation of knowing that he will be okay after she is gone. This conversation is one of my favorite parts in the film because it expresses a real concern on her part that can't be hidden with good humor.

There's also a bit of a role reversal here too because the son is taking care of the mother and he has sort of assumed the parental role while she has a more childish and playful sensibility of the situation. For example, he has to push her to take her pills and also she is the one joking more while he is a bit more serious. When she seriously does discuss him meeting new people though, he says "What new people?" I thought that was telling of exactly how he views life after his mom is gone. Perhaps, he can't even see it because he is still latching onto some hope. The question and the semi snarky way he asks it shows that he doesn't think beyond their life together and that he isn't interested in expanding the people in his life at that moment. He's only focused on her and caring for her. It's all he can bring himself to think about because he's not ready to say goodbye.

One of the most beautiful pieces of dialogue is when she says "It's not your job." He replies "You don't get to say that to me. You don't ever get to say that to me." There is just

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