Ron’s Gone Wrong Reminds Me of My Own Friendship Struggles
The film features a socially awkward middle-schooler and Ron, his new robot, which is supposed to be his ‘Best Friend out of the Box.’ Unexpectedly, the film transported me back to my 8-year-old self and made me remember my own friendship struggles.
My First Solo Visit to the Cinema
At the grand old age of 50, I have to admit I have NEVER been to the cinema on my own – especially not during the day! But I find myself with a couple of hours to spare and decide that a couple of hours of sitting in a dark room in a comfy seat, would be perfect!
I arrive at the cinema and pick the next available film, which turned out to be an animated children’s film called Ron’s Gone Wrong. The cinema was quiet and I quickly decide that daytime cinema is my new favourite thing!
The film is about not fitting in, friendship, connection and technology.
There is a clip in the film where Barney is in the playground with no one to play with, he is friendless. A well meaning adult comes along and tries to make things better, but doesn’t, in fact, for Barney at that moment it makes things worse.
I was transported back to my own 8-year-old self
As that scene played, I was transported back to my own 8-year-old self in the playground and my own friendship struggles. I remember a particular day, it was lunchtime and I had joined the playground late, I can’t remember where I had been or what I had been doing. I approached several groups of my peers who were playing, they weren’t mean to me, they just made it clear to me that there was no room for me in their game that day.
I wasn’t bullied at school, I was just, sort of invisible.
I wandered around the playground on my own, I don’t remember feeling particularly bad about the situation until I saw one of my mum’s friends. She had come to drop something off at the school reception. She spotted me straight away and my eight-year-old self knew the optics looked bad.
Here I was among at least a hundred children all playing, running, laughing – and there was me, wandering around alone. I know she was a well-meaning adult checking in on me, but at that moment I wanted a hole to open up and swallow me up. My ‘not quite fitting in’ self was right there on show.
I felt ashamed that I didn’t fit in.
I didn’t have the words to know what I was feeling at the time but looking back I know it was shame that washed over me. I felt ashamed that I didn’t fit in.
My mum’s friend shouted over to me and asked if I was ok. I knew she would tell my mum she had seen me standing alone (she did – and my mum questioned me about it after school).
That memory still holds much emotion but I didn’t expect that while I was watching a kids animation that I would find tears rolling down my cheeks. I had been exactly where Barney had been – only I didn’t have a malfunctioning robot device on my side. I had to make my own way in the world and work out this friendship thing myself.
I would love to go back to my eight-year-old self and give her a hug
I would love to go back to my eight-year-old self and give her a hug and say this friendlessness would not be permanent.
I would have told her that as she grows and develops more social skills that she will have a rich social life. I wish she would have known in that moment that her life will become abundant with good friends who will love her for her quirkiness. I also wish my 8-year-old self would have known that it was ok to be on your own – and being alone didn’t always mean you were lonely. These are all lessons I learnt much later in life.
I wasn’t expecting such an emotional journey when I went to the cinema to kill a few hours, I certainly wasn’t expecting it from a kids animation, but I am so glad I did!
