Watch the Irish director John Kellyâs âRetirement Planâ and, if you are in any way creative or ambitious, youâll kick yourself wondering, Why didnât I think of that? Because itâs so simple: a list of things a man named Ray hopes to do after he quits working. The animation is just as straightforward as the premise, the figures closer to Martin Handfordâs Waldoâof âWhereâs Waldo?â fameâthan to anything Pixarâs turned out. The characterâs eyes are dots, or light reflecting off glasses, and the script is mostly presented in a voice-over by the actor Domhnall Gleeson. The music is as ostensibly uncomplicated as everything elseâchords on a piano, a spare, almost mournful song called âWalking Through a House Where a Family Has Lived,â by John Carroll Kirby. And the movie is shortâjust under seven minutes. Kelly relates the story of Rayâs life by telling us not what heâs accomplished but what he hasnât: written poetry, meditated, microdosed, hiked.
It makes one ponder oneâs own life. I used to think I would retire and enjoy a purposeful final act, but then I bought a second apartment in my Upper East Side co-op, meaning I now have two outrageous maintenance fees to pay, meaning I can never, ever stop working. Like Ray in the movie, I had such big plans. First on my list was mastering German. Now Iâll have to settle with what I already know. This includes the phrase âI am old and have many ghosts,â which, honestly, might be all Iâll need at age ninety-two.
At the start of the movie, Ray looks to be on the young side of old, early to mid-sixties, and plump. Halfway through, heâs spindly, with a few more simple lines drawn on his cheeks. Then heâs stooped over and we think, No, wait! Itâs done with such grace, charm, and humor that the end sneaks up on us, just as it will, I suspect, when those who can afford it are making retirement plans of their own.
