Channel your inner daydreamer and go on holiday with The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

I’ve got a confession to make that comes as no big surprise to those who know me best. I consider myself to be very “Mittyesque.” That is, I’ve always been a restless daydreamer. A rather meek person to those I don’t know well, I’ve always secretly yearned to lead a more exciting life full of adventure and travel. And that is why as a kid I fell in love with the story – and really the character – of Walter Mitty. And after seeing Ben Stiller’s take on the beloved character, I’m left feeling more than a little inspired this holiday season.

Walter Mitty first appeared in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, a short story written by American author James Thurber in 1939. Walter Mitty is a timid husband/daydreamer, who while out running errands with his wife, passes the time by inventing various daydreams in his head. Whether he’s fantasizing about being a commanding officer or a skilled surgeon, Walter fancies himself as a capable man in charge.

This makes sense when you contrast his “dream life” with how he is in his real world – the henpecked husband who isn’t allowed to drive over 55 mph with his wife present and the distracted man who keeps forgetting what’s on his shopping list. Through his fantasies, Walter is allowed to be what he wants to be: a better version of himself who isn’t afraid of anything or anyone. Despite the story being less than five pages in length, Thurber manages to masterfully convey a fully rounded character that many of us can relate to. Off the top of my head, I can’t think of a better example of a fictional daydreamer than Walter Mitty.

Danny Kaye is absolutely brilliant in the original 1947 film version of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. I hadn’t seen it in years, but decided to order a copy of the DVD last month in anticipation of the Ben Stiller update. The original movie deviates from the short story in that Walter is engaged to a pushy woman he doesn’t really love and it’s mostly his mother who keeps trying to control his life. The fantasy sequences are hilarious and a secondary plot is added in which Walter finds himself embroiled in a real-life tale of mystery and intrigue, one that is far more exciting than any of the ones he has dared to dream up for himself.

Hollywood has been toying with the idea of an updated Walter Mitty movie for years. When I was younger, I remember seeing Jim Carrey’s name tied to the project at one time but that fell through, much to my disappointment. However, I must say I thoroughly enjoyed Ben Stiller directing and starring as the lead role in the current movie. Is this version perfect? No, it has its flaws like any other movie, but it comes pretty close to the spirit of the character and providing an updated backdrop for him to daydream against.

In the 2013 “real world,” we discover that Walter Mitty is the meek, behind-the-scenes man in charge of negative assets at Life magazine who is also secretly in love with one of his co-workers. When it’s announced that Life will be undergoing a digital transformation and this will be the final published issue, Walter finds himself in a jam that presents a unique opportunity. Renowned photojournalist Sean O’Connell (Sean Penn in a role he was born to play) has sent a photograph that he says captures the “quintessence” of Life that should be used for the final magazine cover. In 16 years of loyal employment, Walter has never lost a single negative – until now, and this one is of the utmost importance to his career, as he finds himself on the verge of being thought of as “obsolete.” This downsized work culture is something I found very relatable in these shaky economic times.

After years of daydreaming various scenarios in which he gets to be the hero, Walter now has the opportunity to save the day by delivering the missing negative. However, in order to do so, he must first break out of his shell and embark upon a global journey to track down O’Connell, which leads him to exotic locales including Greenland, Iceland and remote areas of Afghanistan.

I hoped they would be able to up the ante with Walter’s daydreaming possibilities thanks to all the breakthroughs special effects have made since the original came out, and I wasn’t disappointed. From a visual standpoint alone, this movie is very pretty to look at. Walter’s daydreams have gotten more outlandish than anything they could have dreamed in 1947, and I think daydreamers of all ages will be able to appreciate this. I read somewhere that Stiller shot the entire movie on film because he thinks it looks better, and I’d have to agree. There is a certain element of artistic style to this movie that would be hard to pinpoint exactly, but I know I haven’t seen or felt anything else like it in a while.

This movie features an all-around great cast. Walter’s mother is played by veteran actress Shirley MacLaine, his rival at Life is played by Parks & Rec’s Adam Scott and Walter’s love interest is played convincingly by Kristen Wiig. Patton Oswalt makes a memorable cameo as an eHarmony customer service representative (as a single person, I especially appreciated all the jokes about online dating and trying to make your profile stand out), while Olafur Darri Olafsson was my favorite character aside from Mitty (he portrays a helicopter pilot/karaoke singer in one of the funniest scenes in the movie). I also can’t think of a better song to be featured in the end credits than Jack Johnson’s version of Escape (The Pina Colada Song).

I think it’s obvious The Secret Life of Walter Mitty was a labor of love for Ben Stiller. It’s definitely one of the best movies I’ve ever seen him in. Stiller is also the first to admit in interviews that this isn’t a remake; he set out to capture a different genre entirely from the original, and I believe that for the most part, he has succeeded. This version of Walter Mitty is a more well-rounded character than either of our previous encounters with him have conveyed him to be. An ordinary man who struggled for years as an unsung hero doing everything required of him, he emerges as a man able to accomplish more than he ever dreamed possible, allowing him to finally be seen for the hero that we knew he was all along.

If you see this movie and don’t come out of the theater wanting to become a better version of yourself, I think you missed the point. This was the only movie I reviewed in 2013 in which people were so moved they were actually clapping aloud at the end. As Sean Penn’s character notes, the most beautiful things in life do not ask to be seen – they simply exist. However, I think The Secret Life of Walter Mitty begs to be seen.