Cats of Mirikitani

Cats of Mirikitani

I found the film Cats of Mirikitani to be amazingly powerful. I found it quite miraculous how Linda was able to find something in Jimmy to want to interview him and follow his story. It was nice to see one act of kindness do so much to someone. I was glad to see her offer her home to Jimmy in hopes that he would better himself. After seeing his potential in art, she knew that Jimmy meant well and after the 9/11 incident she could not bear to live with him living in the streets.

I noticed a parallel connection between Japanese Americans during the World War II and Muslims after 9/11. People are quick to assume and make insulting connections just from a person’s image. These stereotypes can be quite offensive, especially to innocent people. For Jimmy, he was told to “go back to his country” in which little did people know that he was actually born in San Francisco, California.

I never knew about the Japanese Concentration Camps and the conditions that these Japanese Americans were put in. Forcing them to give up their American citizenship and then returning it without notifying them was beyond cruel.

Jimmy continued to live the rest of his life hating the American government. He always thought that they were scheming to harm him in the long run. This caused him to be reluctant in having them help him find an apartment on his own.

I thought Jimmy was such a powerful man overall. Not only did he live through hell but was also able to remember every single memory from his younger years. I felt like the theme of memory played a major role throughout the story. He was able to cope with the pain of his memory through his paintings. I also felt as though visiting the Tule Lake was a sign of closure with Jimmy’s haunting past. By visiting such a devastating place, he was able to finally say goodbye to that chapter in his life and continue on with his life. I appreciated the fact that although Jimmy remembered everything in his life, he did not let that stop him from doing what he loved, which was painting.

At the end of the day, this made me realize that the American dream involves pursuing your destiny in life no matter obstacles may get in the way of that. Regardless of the harsh life Jimmy was given, he made sure painting stayed dear to him whether he made millions of dollars from it or not- do what you are passionate about and that is the American dream.