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The Remarkable Life of Ibelin

By-
Farhad Dalal
Rating
4.5 Star popcorn reviewss

Introduction

The Remarkable Life Of Ibelin is essentially a commentary on two contrasting worlds – the real and the reel, both of which signify contrasting emotions through the gaze of its protagonist. Clearly, one epitomizes life in the reel world and the other, living through a million deaths in the real world. The gap between the two worlds could not have been further apart, although the physical distance is just on the other side of the screen. It is established very early on in this moving documentary that its central character Mats had expired after his long battle with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy(DMD), a degenerative disease that had created a conflict between his mind and body while completely cutting him off the real world. As told through the lens of his family featuring his parents and sister, and through some footages from his life, you could see a rapid degeneration of an individual who barely did get a chance to live his life. Clearly, his body did not offer him the luxury to be social, there was virtually no chance of him to fall in love or even make friends, that prompted his parents to allow him a screenlife, largely which was oblivious to them.

Story & Screenplay

The Remarkable Life Of Ibelin almost unfolds like a tragedy in its first act, with the focus being on the grieving inferences of Mats’ family, who clearly felt a void with his absence (he expired in 2014). But it is only when they choose to put out an announcement of his death, that this docu-drama switches course while allowing the viewers a sneak-peek into a world where Mats was a happy soul, free to walk and run, or even change form. That world was the reel world, wherein Mats, like millions of folks from different parts of the world had his avatar created in a game titled the World of Warcraft. The game in itself was a liberating ray of hope for Mats who was essentially bound on the wheelchair for most of his final days, barely able to move a muscle. And through this game, he had a chance to live-free in a world that was devoid of pain, even while having the privilege to touch so many souls around him.

The documentary is genre-bending in many ways because you often see a large chunk of the drama unfold as a decomstructed strip of animation through the archives of Mats. It almost coaxes you to develop a relationship with the fictional world through the alternate version of Mats, Ibelin who happens to be a viking. The liberation for Mats can be judged from the fact that the passers-by (and co-gamers) would often spot him running the path as a daily chore, something that he just wasn’t destined to do in reality. And hence, it hardly came as a surprise that Mats spent almost 20K hours in the final decade of his life online, a symbol of escapism that also allowed him to form equations with other folks around the world.

One of the most fascinating phases of this documentary was when the parents started receiving multiple emails after their son’s death, that was a bittersweet feeling for them. Clearly their own regret of Mats not being able to socialize was a little more subdued, even as they did get to know about his secret virtual life wherein he had touched so many lives in the process. It wouldn’t be wrong to call Mats a womanizer as recited by his father, who then went on to say that he cannot be more proud of it. The documentary samples the lives of folks whose lives completely changed after interacting with Ibelin (Mats’ virtual avatar). It was amazing of how many lives Mats was able to touch by simply interacting with people in yhe virtual world.

The Dichotomy Of Mats :

Like most of us, even Mats had his share of mood swings, most of which would pour out in the virtual world. He did lead a dual secretive life which basically meant neither of the two worlds (his parents and his virtual friends) knew about his alternate life. As far as the virtual perspective was concerned, he was often in a shell often curbing his ‘actual’ feelings that he developed towards a co-gamer, or almost being dismissive of the flaws that were pointed out to him, that was a byproduct of his degenerative disease that eventually started catching up with him in the personal world too. His frustration was palpable, almost wanting to be treated as a normal person which ironically was catching up with his avatar in reel life too, even as folks did get inquisitive. Ofcourse not being able to meet the folks in person during social gatherings was another bummer, something that he chose to conceal. This was the dichotomy in Mats’ life that was soon blurring his worlds, even as his health began to deteriorate by the day.

The Contrasting Third Act:

The entire third act of the documentary has to be such a tear-jerker where the emotions are bittersweet. Yes, Mats was free from the shackles of his body but there was also a moment of thought for the parents, given that losing a child is the worst feeling for any parent. But what cut through the grief was the remarkable life of Ibelin, given the number of people whose lives he had touched. The moment also doubles up as a symbol of hope given the number of folks who actually turned up for his funeral, the folks that he had never met in person. And it got me thinking on how a moment of compassion goes a long way in keeping the person alive, days after his death. What seemed like a worthless life filled with struggle to begin with, had touched more lives than one could ever have imagined. This brought me to the contrasting theme of the docu-drama – of life and death. Mats was often dying everyday in reality while living a life to die for in the reel world, a social media space that we all would remain alive long after we are gone. But the important thing being, how many lives would we have touched through our lesser gesture (online or otherwise) – that would define the immortality of the soul, like in the case of Mats.

Conclusion

The Remarkable Life Of Ibelin is a moving eulogy of contrasting worlds of life and death laced with grief and compassion packaged in a documentary that is one of the finest this year. It is deeply emotional and supremely joyful, leaving you with a bittersweet feeling that lingers on, long after this genre-bending documentary has ended. Available on Netflix and Highly Highly Recommended!

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