If it were not for the “Leaving Soon” label on Prime, I wouldn’t have clicked “Play.” On the same breath, I also wanted to rant about how almost all the movies we wanted to watch that were supposed to be on Prime (according to Google) weren’t, and it boils my blood. More on this at a later post; let me talk about Dead Man Walking on this one.
It’s an iconic title that I’ve always heard around, but I’ve never really watched it, nor have any knowledge about the film except for the synopsis written on the site.
It was aggravating to watch.
The film revolves around a nun being a spiritual advisor to a death-row inmate for a double homicide and rape.
I’m all for finding spirituality, even in the toughest of times, but I don’t have any grace for sexual criminals. The moment I heard from the film that the man was in prison because of the mentioned cases, I was already uncomfortable. That’s what a movie does to you.
I do understand Sister’s goal for standing by Poncelet and working with him until he asks for forgiveness for his sins and gets to know Jesus in the process. I know (growing up with a devout Christian aunt) there is some relief that someone, regardless of who they were, they get to know Jesus at the very last minute.
There is a huge debate about the death penalty all around the world. On one side, people argue you deprive them of life and a chance to change, to rehabilitate; on the other hand, people think we’re wasting tax money on dangerous people who should be kept out of society. During the film, those arguments were in my head. Is this rapist, who’s also a human, a son, and a brother, deserving of a second chance in life? My answer was nah.
Up until the last chance he got, he denied any involvement. He’d do anything to get out of there. He shouldn’t be blaming alcohol or whoever he was with during the time of the crime; he was an adult who knows right from wrong. He has a mother, a woman; how could he think of doing something so unspeakable?
Did he make a mistake? Yes. It is wrong, but he chose to do it. The only mistake he made, from his POV, is getting caught. It was such nonsense. Two people died because of their depravity. Families are mourning. You know damn well you did something wrong, and you’re determined to keep it to yourself until the last minute. My goodness.
Depriving someone of life is never an easy conversation or task, and yet, people do it amicably for gain, whether it be wealth, sexual pleasure, or the thrill. Will the death penalty solve these? I don’t know. What I do know is that being surrounded by a loving environment might help. But at the end of the day, it’s still on you, yourself, to know what should and should not be. It’s your responsibility to grow up.
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