History Film / KPax

An adaptation of the [[Literature/KPax 1990 novel of the same name]], '''''K-PAX''''' is the story of a clinical psychiatrist (Creator/JeffBridges) who takes on a patient claiming to be an extraterrestrial from an advanced alien civilization. The patient (Creator/KevinSpacey), named prot (rhymes with "goat" and spelled with all lowercase letters) displays vast academic knowledge and remarkable philosophical outlooks, which begin having positive effects on the patients and staff of the Manhattan Psychiatric Institute... while leading to increasing uncertainty over his true origins.

* HowDoYouLikeThemApples: In his first session with Dr. Powell, prot immediately inquires after the bowl of apples in the office, and proceeds to devour one with great satisfaction.

* BizarreAlienSenses: prot is confirmed early on as being able to somehow detect infrared wavelengths of light. He claims it's an evolutionary trait due to the persistently low light conditions on K-PAX. It's also hinted that he's watching Powell at one point through a two-way mirror, and he's able to understand animals.

* AlienAmongUs: {{Inverted}}-prot is completely open about his supposed nature, even with strangers, which lands him in the back of a cop car within minutes of arriving in New York City.

* [[spoiler:AmbiguousEnding: Hoo boy...]]

* [[spoiler: TheUnreveal: The exact nature of prot/Robert Porter's existence is never quite unraveled, though profound evidence is found for both his life as a traumatized human and background as an alien. The truth is likely a combination of both involving prot bonding with his human friend's body and mind, but this is never outright said, and left up to the audience to piece together.]]

* AlienNonInterferenceClause: prot doesn't mention an actual rule, but refuses to explain the mechanics of light-travel on the grounds that a relatively primitive species like humanity could use it as an apocalyptic weapon.

* TraumaInducedAmnesia: [[spoiler: The murder of Robert Porter's wife and young daughter, followed by his murder of their killer, followed by his suicide attempt. The question is whether it turned him into a disassociative-personality delusional with savant-like intelligence, especially for astronomy, or if it was the catalyst for his lifelong alien friend prot to reunite with him.]]

* ActorAllusion: An interesting variation - in the original novel, prot lists ''Film/{{Starman}}'' as one of his favourite films. ''Starman'' was about a benevolent alien visitor played by JeffBridges. The novel, which is written in the first person by Dr. Gene Brewer as a psychological case study of prot, mentions that it's been optioned into a movie towards the end, so it's entirely possible that we're watching the same film the book's characters eventually see, Jeff Bridges and all.

* ArmorPiercingQuestion: Powell objects to prot attempting to cure Howie and Ernie, protesting that it's dangerous for him to attempt it and that it isn't his job to cure them, it's Powell's. prot casually asks if it's his job to cure his patients, why hasn't he done it yet?
* ArtisticLicenseMedicine: Powell could very likely lose his license to practice medicine with how he treats prot, for just one example of why, discussing his handling of a patient with others.
* AlienAmongUs: Inverted - prot is completely open about his supposed nature, even with strangers, which lands him in the back of a cop car within minutes of arriving in New York City.

* BizarreAlienReproduction: According to prot, the [=K-PAX=]ian mating process is profoundly painful and associated with a terrible smell.

* BlueAndOrangeMorality: Zigzagged. prot claims every being in the universe is capable of telling right from wrong. Their mastery of this on K-PAX has created a society where no crimes are committed, no harm is payed and no laws are necessary. He later claims that the human need to punish misbehavior, "an eye for an eye," is seen as a destructive and stupid practice by most other species in the universe

* DeadpanSnarker: prot, moreso than in the novel.

* DemotedToExtra: The other patients, compared to the novel at least. Several are not seen at all and the handful that do appear play smaller roles. This also occurs to a lesser degree to Brewer/Powell -- the book contains two subplots, one where he's going through a midlife crisis and is attracted to a reporter investigating prot, and how prot reminds him of his late father that he has a lot of love/hate issues with. Neither matter is even hinted at in the film.
* DoctorDoctorDoctor: at the planetarium when Prot and Dr. Powell meet four astrophysicists. [[http://www.metacafe.com/watch/an-_PIsJmY2nhbmmY/k_pax_2001_planetarium/ See the clip here.]]

* FasterThanLightTravel: Using light itself. Discussed in some detail throughout the story, and serving as inspiration for the visual style of the entire film, which emphasizes light in every scene.

* HumanAliens: Played with. prot claims he only looks human on Earth, because it's the most energy-efficient form to take, and likewise, on K-PAX he looks like a [=K-PAX=]ian. It later ends up being a bit more confusing - [[spoiler: he doesn't just look ''human'', he looks exactly his human "friend" who went missing years earlier. The ambiguous implications are either that a) he simply ''is'' this person, a delusional savant, or that b) after the human's failed suicide attempt, prot's true form took over his friend's body and merged their consciousnesses.]]

* ImmortalProcreationClause: Fleshed out more in the original novel - [=K-PAX=]ians live for over a thousand years, but the painful, disgusting sexual process required to conceive [=K-PAX=]ian children means overpopulation (let alone ''accidental'' pregnancy) is not an issue.
* LightIsGood: Played with - [=K-PAX=]ian FTL travel is based on using light itself as the medium to travel by. prot displays a reverence for light, which becomes instilled in some of the characters he interacts with, especially Dr. Powell, but also has a respect and caution for its power. He refuses to explain the hard mechanics of light-travel to human scientists out of concern for our relatively primitive race using it to blow themselves or another planet up. Furthermore, he is light-sensitive by human standards and wears thick sunglasses at nearly all times, claiming that Earth is far brighter than K-PAX, where conditions are usually closer to our own twilight. Light in general is also used beautifully as a visual motif throughout the movie.

* StrawberryShorthand: Due to prot's love of fresh fruit, staff co-ordinator Joyce Trexler brings him a bag of homegrown strawberries from her garden.

* TrademarkFavoriteFood: prot enthusiastically eats prodigious amounts of fresh fruit throughout the movie - peels, stems and all. According to him, [=K-PAX=]ians are all vegetarian/vegan.

* ActorAllusion: An interesting variation - in the original novel, prot lists ''{{Starman}}'' as one of his favourite films. ''Starman'' was about a benevolent alien visitor played by JeffBridges. The novel, which is written in the first person by Dr. Gene Brewer as a psychological case study of prot, mentions that it's been optioned into a movie towards the end, so it's entirely possible that we're watching the same film the book's characters eventually see, Jeff Bridges and all.

->'''Dr. Powell:''' ''I'd like to begin by asking you... if you know why you're here.''
->'''prot:''' ''Of course. You think I'm crazy.''
->'''Dr. Powell:''' ''I prefer the term "ill". Do you think you are? Ill? ''
->'''prot:''' ''(*shrugs*) A little homesick, perhaps. ''

An adaptation of the [[Literature/{{KPAX}} 1990 novel of the same name]], ''K-PAX'' is the story of a clinical psychiatrist (Creator/JeffBridges) who takes on a patient claiming to be an extraterrestrial from an advanced alien civilization. The patient (Creator/KevinSpacey), named prot (rhymes with "goat" and spelled with all lowercase letters) displays vast academic knowledge and remarkable philosophical outlooks, which begin having positive effects on the patients and staff of the Manhattan Psychiatric Institute... while leading to increasing uncertainty over his true origins.

* BerserkButton: Though he doesn't get nearly as irrate as in the novel, the first time prot is noticeably annoyed by Powell is when he tries to ask about how crime on K-PAX is punished.

->'''Dr. Powell:''' ''I'd like to begin by asking you.... if you know why you're here.''

An adaptation of the [[Literature/{{KPAX}} 1990 novel of the same name]], ''K-PAX'' is the story of a clinical psychiatrist (Creator/JeffBridges) who takes on a patient claiming to be an extraterrestrial from an advanced alien civilization. The patient (Creator/KevinSpacey), named prot (rhymes with "goat" and spelled with all lowercase letters) displays vast academic knowledge and remarkable philosophical outlooks, which begin having positive effects on the patients and staff of the Manhattan Psychiatric Institute.... while leading to increasing uncertainty over his true origins.

* TheStinger: The credits end with [[spoiler: Dr. Powell, having developed an interest in amateur astronomy, standing in his backyard at night and looking at the constellation Lyra through a telescope, wondering....]]

* ImmortalProcreationClause: Fleshed out more in the original novel - [=K-PAX=]ians live for over a thousand years, but the painful, disgusting sexual process required to conceive [=K-PAX=]ian children means overpopulation(let alone ''accidental'' pregnancy) is not an issue.

* HumanAliens: Played with. prot claims he only looks human on Earth, because it's the most energy-efficient form to take, and likewise, on K-PAX he looks like a [=K-PAX=]ians. It later ends up being a bit more confusing - [[spoiler: he doesn't just look ''human'', he looks exactly his human "friend" who went missing years earlier. The ambiguous implications are either that a) he simply ''is'' this person, a delusional savant, or that b) after the human's failed suicide attempt, prot's true form took over his friend's body and merged their consciousnesses.]]

* [[spoiler: AmbiguousEnding: Hoo boy...]]

* [[spoiler: AmbiguousEnding: Hoo boy....]]

An adaptation of the [[Literature/{{KPAX}} 1990 novel of the same name]], ''K-PAX'' is the story of a clinical psychiatrist (JeffBridges) who takes on a patient claiming to be an extraterrestrial from an advanced alien civilization. The patient (KevinSpacey), named prot (rhymes with "goat" and spelled with all lowercase letters) displays vast academic knowledge and remarkable philosophical outlooks, which begin having positive effects on the patients and staff of the Manhattan Psychiatric Institute.... while leading to increasing uncertainty over his true origins.

* BizarreAlienSenses: prot is confirmed early on as being able to somehow detect infrared wavelengths of light. He claims it's an evolutionary trait due to the persistently low light conditions on K-PAX.
* BlueAndOrangeMorality: Specifically averted - prot claims every being in the universe is capable of telling right from wrong. Their mastery of this on K-PAX has created a society where no crimes are committed, no harm is payed and no laws are necessary.

* TheShrink: Psychiatrist Dr. Powell is Type 2.

** Aside from the alternate perspective of prot's true identity between film and book, the book goes much more in depth on the backstories of the other patients and Brewer himself.

* EpiphanyTherapy: How prot heals the black patient.

* DemotedToExtra: The other patients, compared to the novel at least. Several are not seen at all and the handful that do appear play smaller roles.

An adaptation of the [[{{K-PAX}} 1990 novel of the same name]], ''K-PAX'' is the story of a clinical psychiatrist (JeffBridges) who takes on a patient claiming to be an extraterrestrial from an advanced alien civilization. The patient (KevinSpacey), named prot (rhymes with "goat" and spelled with all lowercase letters) displays vast academic knowledge and remarkable philosophical outlooks, which begin having positive effects on the patients and staff of the Manhattan Psychiatric Institute.... while leading to increasing uncertainty over his true origins.

* NightmareCatapult: The way Jeff Bridges's character wakes from a nightmare.