What I’m Watching: Thor, LeBron, and the story behind the story

This summer is shaping up to be one of the greatest movie summers I’ve ever experienced.

This year’s NBA playoffs are the most exciting and intriguing since I can remember.

In both cases, it’s the story behind the story that’s pulling me in.

I’ll take a chance on a movie that might be a flop, for two reasons. First, it’s always fun to make fun of a bad movie (I had a BLAST at I Am Number Four). Second—and more importantly—I’m obsessed with Movie Theatre Buttered Popcorn. It’s LITERALLY the best stuff on earth. Okay, not literally. But it’s up there.

So I took a chance on Thor. I didn’t know or care about the comic book, and the idea of Norse gods hanging out on earth seemed super cheeseball. But my friend was really amped for it, so I “bought the popcorn” and went. And was surprised to find myself really enjoying it! The movie just worked. And as I thought about how good it was later on, I realized that it was the story behind the story that had sucked me in. My Mom the English professor would probably call it the theme.

Thor’s a movie about a young Norse-like demigod who is exiled from his planet to earth and winds up defending it against other, angrier god-type beings before going back home, where said god-types have also wreaked havoc.

But there’s a deeper story embedded within Thor. That theme is the challenge of becoming an adult, about gaining wisdom through adversity and learning the true meaning of glory. That’s what Thor learns, and even though I didn’t care about Thor heading into the theater, I enjoyed watching him grow. And by watching, I learn too.

Every movie that means something to us has a powerful theme, and this year, the NBA Playoffs do too—powerful enough that even non-basketball fans are getting into it.

The NBA playoffs are happening now and I’ve been anticipating them for almost an entire year, ever since LeBron James “took his talents to South Beach” (if you don't know the story, it's here). I’m a LeBron fan, have been since he stepped on the court, and until last summer most people were, too.

LeBron’s move from the Cavaliers to the Heat, and especially the classless way he did it, tarnished his sparkling image in the eyes of America. The man who had always been loved and respected by everyone became a villain, jeered and booed everywhere he played. 

To some he was arrogant, obsessed with his own fame and popularity. To others he was weak and scared, too timid to try and win a championship by himself. What was left out of the conversation was the fact that Bosh and Wade (his new teammates) were his friends. And what we see in hindsight is that the NBA has tons of elite teams, and even together, James and his friends may not have what it takes to win.

That’s the theme of this year’s NBA playoffs, at least for me: What It Takes To Win. LeBron traded his popularity and the chance to win “Solo Gloria” (glory all to himself) because he thought it would be the best chance for success.

And now it’s all on the line. Will LeBron succeed, proving that he knew what he was doing? Or will he and his friends fail, to the delight of almost everyone? Either way it’s going down in history, and it’s going to be a life lesson sports fans teach their children someday.

We’re all like LeBron and Thor, in a way. Each of our lives, too, is a lesson to the people around us. When people see me, they also see a theme. What’s the story behind my story, the lesson or truth that my life reveals? Is it the story I want to tell?