Adjustments

I watched The Adjustment Bureau over the weekend; I enjoyed the film, and along the way came to a few conclusions.  1: If Emily Blunt and Matt Damon had a child, they would produce the cleftiest chin known to mankind.  2: Men in fedoras are inherently suspicious.  Yes, this includes hipsters.  3: I was somewhat disturbed by the central premise of the movie.

Talking to his guardian angel (who, 4: Anthony Makie looks a LOT like Will Smith ... long lost brother?), Matt Damon is told that he cannot be with his clefty dream girl because to do so would ruin both of their dreams.  He would never run for President o' the United States; she would never become Dancing Jesus.  The explanation proffered is that to be with one another would blunt their ambition.  To very closely paraphrase the movie, being with one another would 'be enough,' and they would no longer need to be driven to succeed.  SPOILER ALERT: SKIP TO THE NEXT PARAGRAPH IF YOU'RE ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE.  So the movie goes on to have the mystical 'Chairman' rewrite the plan of the world for them to be together and it's all very lovey dovey, but it never goes on to address the question of whether or not them being written back into one another's stories precludes their destined accomplishments.

The message, however, is trouble to me.  Is it really impossible to achieve greatness AND be in a fulfilling relationship?  The picture often portrayed in cultural institutions (films, politics, etc) is that balancing family and work is an impossibility.  Even films which emphasize the importance of family over work often have the protagonist give up their professional ambition in favor of caring for their families.  My daughter is 4 1/2 months old, I have been married to my wife for 6 1/2 years, and I really feel like I am driven to succeed because of them.  Not because I need to prove anything to myself or to them, but because I want to be successful.  This is the difference between wanting to challenge myself and needing to chase a phantom to prop up a sense of self worth.  And most days I believe that.  Some days, though, some days I wonder if Hollywood don't have it right ...