Sometimes I think about Robert De Niro’s small rôle in Brazil (1985, dir. Terry Gilliam). (Incredibly small spoilers about Brazil follow.)
De Niro plays a hypercompetent renegade highly wanted by the dystopian authorities. He has a level of sneak and cinematic urban-superhero transport powers that really remind one of Batman. And what is he doing with these powers?
He is fixing people’s HVAC systems.
In a world where people mostly appear to live in tiny, poorly designed apartments maintained by a venal and inefficient bureaucracy, he is risking his life to make people’s homes livable by fixing their heating and air conditioning.
I dunno, I just think about that. You can daydream about being the big hero who changes everything by yourself, or you can just pick up tools and become an actual small hero by helping actual people in actual ways.
