What "Orion and the Dark" gets right about anxiety

A psychologist's perspective on the new Netflix movie for kids

Release poster courtesy of IMDB.com

I laughed, I cried, I felt genuine appreciation for the Dark. It’s been awhile since I have felt this much enthusiasm for a kids movie. “Orion and the Dark” is beautiful, both in it’s animation and storytelling, and the lessons it holds for anxious children (and adults!) are right on the mark.

****Major Spoilers Ahead!****

Here are five things that “Orion” gets right about anxiety and facing our fears.

1. Making mountains out of molehills

You might call it “spiraling.” I call it “catastrophizing.” No matter what you call it, we’ve all been there. Orion perfectly illustrates the busyness of the anxious mind and it’s impressive ability to bring worst case scenarios to life quicker than you can say “nope.” At the advice of his therapist, Orion documents his endless fears, including speaking to girls, being called on in class, and murderous clowns, and how each “what if” ends in catastrophe. Of all his worries, Orion is most terrified of the dark, who is embodied in the movie as a hulking, inky black entity that sounds like Seth Rogan (but is voiced by Paul Walter Hauser, apparently). The depiction of childhood anxiety is both spot-on, which should be validating for kids who struggle with significant anxiety, and also normalized- with the message that fear is a part of life. My four--year-old, who is currently in the scared-of-the-dark phase herself, said “He [Orion] is afraid of the closet just like me!” I crossed my fingers that Orion was going to help us out with exactly that.

2. The intolerance of uncertainty

The anxious mind struggles with uncertainty. We want to know for sure what will happen and how we will handle it. At the climax of the movie, Orion finds himself in a (literal) nightmare and struggles not to be sucked into a (literal) blackhole fueled by the force of his fear. His friend, the Dark, has already been sucked into the abyss and Orion is tasked with saving him. As images of his worst fears swirl around him, he wonders aloud what will happen if he jumps in to save Dark. His companion cuts right to the chase. She says, “I have no idea [what will happen] but I think that’s the point. We always want to know the ending because it makes things less scary in the middle parts. But maybe being scared is just a part of life.” Pretty astute for a children’s movie, right? I always talk to my clients about the difficulty of tolerating uncertainty, and how this intolerance underlies all sorts fears. For many people, this is an “aha-moment” in their understanding of their own anxiety.

3. The only way out is through

Just when I thought the movie might be falling into the murky territory of encouraging Orion to take control over his thoughts (which is difficult to do at best, and counterproductive at worst), our protagonists drop some therapeutic gold. The only solution is to feel the fear and do what you have to do anyway. Do it, afraid. I love the clarity that the movie provides here; our heroes are not “overcoming” fear and then jumping into the dark. They are willing to feel the fear in service of saving their friend. Orion does not end his journey as a kid who is no longer afraid; but he knows the power of not letting that feeling stop him from trying new things.

4. The things we fear have their own best qualities

There are many lovely lessons woven throughout this story. My favorite was the way the audience is encouraged to embrace and celebrate dichotomies. What is light without darkness? Courage without fear?  Orion learns that when he avoids the darkness, he is missing out on the brightness of the stars and the bliss of the quiet. More than that, we see that the apparent perfection of endless sunlight and daytime is not all it’s cracked up to be; the day can only be appreciated in all it’s glory when it is couched in the cool, quiet, darkness of night.

5. We are so much more than our anxiety

Orion and the movie’s other anxious kiddos embody what I know to be true about the anxious, the inhibited, the introverted. The anxious mind is often a place of fantastic imagination, creativity, and sensitivity. The same qualities that enable us to create catastrophic worries, can be harnessed to do astounding things, like write poetry, build businesses, and create community. Our anxious minds see endless possibilities. If we learn to dance with our fear, instead of run or hide, there is no telling what we can do.

What did you think of “Orion and the Dark?” I've read mixed reviews so far, so I would love to hear genuine reactions in the comments.

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