K-Pax is an open ended film. It is an excellent movie, which can be viewed from many different perspectives. I chose to view it from a hopeful viewpoint, because that is who I am as a person. Throughout the movie, viewers will be forced to think, and to answer various questions. The main questions that I was faced with were: What is K-Pax? Who was Prot? What did the Blue Jay represent? Why did Prot take Bess to K-Pax? The are many possible analysis’s for each question, but here is my take on this beautiful film.
What is K-Pax? This is the main question on peoples minds after watching the movie. K-Pax was a spiritual location, with no physical presence (despite the coordinates and knowledge that Prot had). K-Pax is where everyone wishes they could be, but only temporarily. A spiritual universe with no attachments. There are no families in K-Pax, which makes it a quiet place for self reflection, only in the short term. As a regular human being, can you go to K-Pax? The answer is yes; we were all given the emotional and mental capacity to transport ourselves there. It is essential to know that you can only travel in spirit; through our dreams, hypnosis, or meditation. K-Pax is always there for us when we need it, and will never go away.
Who did Prot represent? Was he an alien, or just a special human being? He was a human being, with an extremely high level of spiritual enlightenment. He “travels” to K-Pax, and transports his knowledge to other people that he meets. He is on earth for the purpose of helping others, and to teach the patients that they have the power to heal themselves. One by one, he influences the lives of each person he meets (Just as he had set out to do). For others, he was a symbol of hope, mixed with knowledge. The most hopeful element of Prot’s nature was when he “brings” a Blue Jay to instill hope into everyone. Rarely does a human being exist who influences so many people. Also, due to his strong character and spiritual enlightenment, Prot is unresponsive to even the strongest medications. Suffering from a traumatic event in his past, Prot paved the way for a magnificent future on K-Pax.
What was the purpose of the Blue Jay? Prot repeatedly implies to the mental patients that the Blue Jay represents hope. It is a symbol from K-Pax, that anyone is free to enter, stay for however long they need, and leave filled with hope. For the patients, being cured was their main hope, and they all knew what the Blue Jay had come to tell them. A symbol in your everyday life can bring about great change. The next time you see a symbol with positive connotations (it could be a bird, a beautiful car, a flower, virtually anything), realize that it appears for a reason: so that you could look upon the symbol, experience joy, and make a visit to K-Pax.
Why did Prot choose Bess? And what happened to her physical body? Bess was a very mysterious character in the film. She did not speak to anyone except Prot (“I know who you are. You’re the Blue Jay!). But who was she? Bess was a spiritual being, already living at K-Pax. It is implied that she is most similar to Prot, which results in her “permanent leave” for K-Pax. But perhaps the greatest mystery of the movie, was the disappearance of her physical body. If K-Pax is only existent in spirit, why was Bess nowhere to be found? After pondering the subject, I reached a conclusion that she was never truly existent in the physical world, since the day she witnessed the accident. God gave her a physical body, and her spiritual connection with Him was extremely strong. When her spirit transported to K-Pax, she no longer needed a physical body. She can forever live in K-Pax, chosen by god. There are many supernatural elements to this explanation, but it is the most logical description for me. K-Pax exists only in spirit, and Bess existed mainly as a spirit.
K-Pax is one of the most thought-provoking movies ever made. It was made to be interpreted by its viewers. After watching the movie, you may have had many questions. After reading this article, I hope you have some of the answers. If you didn’t, don’t stop looking. Hope can be found in everything, just don’t stop looking.