K-Pax (2001)

To even shape a slight understanding to the plot of this movie, one would have to have access to an absurd amount of substances that alter your perception on reality itself. If a visitor from another planet appeared among us in human form and told the truth about his origins, no doubt he would be treated like Prot, the hero of ''K-PAX,'' who finds himself locked in a closed ward of the Psychiatric Institute of Manhattan. He might not, however, be as lucky as Prot in his psychiatrist. ''This is the most convincing delusional I've ever come across,'' says Dr. Mark Powell, and his voice toys with the notion that Prot might not be delusional. "K-PAX'' avoids an ending that invites tears and supplies one that encourages speculation. Is Prot really from another planet? What happens to him at the end is not quite the answer it seems to be. And consider his range of vision, his versatile blood pressure, his tolerance for Thorazine, and the fact that he describes the intricate orbit of his planet to astronomers who have just discovered it. Against this we must balance the investigative road trip that Powell makes to New Mexico, which offers a persuasive answer and then snatches it away (perhaps Prot simply borrowed a human form). A final answer is unprovable on the basis of what we're told, and I like it that way. I admired how the movie tantalised us with possibilities and allowed the doctor and patient to talk sensibly, if strangely, about the difference between the delusional and that which is simply very unlikely. Whether Prot is right or wrong about where he comes from is not as important as what he does with his conviction.