Reflections from Hulu's "Prey"
Taking stock of embracing intuition, confidence in our abilities and uniqueness
Warning: May contain spoilers.
My friends tell me I am serious, too serious. At times, appropriate as there are things in life that are meant to be taken seriously. But then again, I shouldn’t take life too seriously as I won’t make it out alive anyway. Life is also meant for fun.
Begrudgingly, I take a break from my usual diet of documentaries, dramas, art house films (though I do enjoy reality shows like “Love is Blind” and “90-Day Fiance”) and cave in to my husband’s love for silly movies. I don’t particularly enjoy the exaggerated slapstick of Jim Carrey in “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective” nor the slapdash punchlines of Adam Sandler in “Happy Gilmore” or “Waterboy.” I’ve got my own list of movies and shows and so does he.
One thing in common though is the hesitation of diving deep into the thriller and horror genre. That’s why I was puzzled when he, wired from caffeine and sheer post movie electricity, urged me to watch “Prey” on Hulu.
“I am willing to re-watch it in Comanche dub.” He exclaimed.
He knew the hook. I am a sucker for representation of suppressed cultures in this country, especially that of the original residents and rightful owners of this land. While I knew that it was still a sci-fi thriller, I caved in immediately, opened the Hulu app and watched.
In awe of hearing the dialogue in Comanche language, I paused midway and exclaimed: “Why wasn’t this shown in the cinemas?” It deserved to be enjoyed on the big screen! I pushed the play button and continued. I was having fun, but the serious kicked in.
The movie set in the Northern Plains in 1719, centered in on the story of Naru, a young woman of the tribe, wrestling with her desire to become part of the tribe’s hunters and warriors and the expectations to remain in her place as a woman, gatherer and healer. She, together with her trusty fur companion, Sarii the dog, are put to the test as the alien, Predator, arrives in the plains, shaking up the otherwise peaceful, idyllic ecosystem.
As Naru directed a strategy to capture the mountain lion by balancing up high on a tree’s branch to provide better visibility of the lay of the land, I thought this lady knew more than the average warrior. Her knowledge of the land and animal and her intuition from the connection to the earth were her weapons. The use of her senses and presence even increased her instinctual power.
I thought of myself, phone in hand, dependent on technology to know things - from the weather to direction to name a few - and do thing. Have my mind and body completely lost those abilities? Those innate God-given gifts that allowed humans to survive and thrive for thousands of years. Why have I allowed myself to doubt these gifts? Have I completely disconnected my intuition from its potential?
Naru, even as she dedicated time and energy outside of her duties, to practice her warrior skills, was not perfect. It almost cost her life. Not just once, but a number of times. She was not disheartened. But really, the survival instinct coupled with the muscle memory from practice kicked in hard. Plus her determination to prove herself worthy to get what she desired. And luck, of course. The combination of all four were crucial.
I thought of myself again, what if one out of the four factors gets lost? Will a victory even be possible? Or will it just feel less gratifying?
In one scene, Naru, lost awareness of her surroundings (or maybe one really can’t tell?) fell into quicksand. This was one of the times when she almost died (Very Atreyu-Artax in the Swamps of Sadness in The Neverending Story feels.) It was a mistake. But then experiencing this mistake, learning from it and using it as part of her strategy brought her victory.
So why am I even so afraid of mistakes when I can learn from them and use them to my advantage in the future? I suppose I should survive them first. Ha!
In the end, Naru prevailed. The Predator eliminated. She decapitated the creature and brought home its head as proof of death to the tribe. The doubting tribe now in awe at the feat. She achieved her goal to gain her place as a formidable warrior and hunter with healing skills to boot.
Why do I shy away from the uniqueness of myself? Why do I allow myself to stay within the dictated confines of who “I should” be instead of stepping into what I want and know I could be?
Finally, I repeat that this movie was set in 1719, a far cry from today’s instant push button conveniences, which include gatherer and hunter free passes. Naru’s tribe survived on the land with basic technologies and dependence on each other. Each person had a unique skill that they leaned on as part of the collective.
Often, I ask myself whether we truly and absolutely need all of these technologies, seeing how what we’ve created is wreaking havoc on the earth we live and depend on. We did survive and thrive without them at some point in time.
See? I told you. Serious as serious can be. But go and watch “Prey” on Hulu. It is worth your time. And do watch it with the Comanche dub.
What I am reading:
“The Man Who Could Move Clouds” a family memoir by Ingrid Rojas Contreras. Let’s just say that it is tugging on my current magical heartstrings and opening portals to spirituality and faith beyond the dogma of religion.
What I am watching:
I just finished watching “The Sandman.” I’ve heard of it, but did not get the chance to read the comics in my teens. I am in awe in the depth of the storytelling. Though I am itching to borrow copies of it from the library. I will hold out until the popularity wave subsides.
Last night, my husband and I stumbled upon “Belle,” the Japanese anime movie. The movie was all sorts of strange, hypnotizing and yet deep commentary on the modern world where we latch on to perception afraid of vulnerability with emotions. It had a number of nods to the fairy tale and Disney’s rendition of “Beauty & the Beast.”