Memory and Identity

Memory and identity are central themes of Da, particularly in terms of the ways in which memory affects identity. Charlie recalls his relationship with his father and his father's influence on his life through a series of memory scenes. In some of these memories, Charlie is played by Young Charlie, while the Charlie of the present time, ill his forties, looks on. In other memories, Charlie's character in the present time stands in for his memory of himself at a younger age. At times, the middle-aged Charlie talks and even argues with the young Charlie.

These scenarios express the ways in which memories of the past affect one's sense of identity in the present. In some ways, Charlie at middle-age is still the same person as Charlie at age seven, which is why Charlie at middle-age plays the role of Charlie as a child in his...