mythic

His appeal isn’t rooted in reason or fact; it’s a gut-level, emotionally charged force, a dark mythic archetype tapping into America’s discontent.

A romantic cave sequence splits the difference between mythic mystery and more immediate pleasures, a complex moment that the Roberto Rossellini of “Voyage to Italy” would have been proud to sign.

They think of the mythic Valenzuela of 1981, the shy, portly pitcher with the unorthodox delivery who conquered all by giving his all.

As they put it, beauty is “subjective but also not true. It’s mythic and fantasy.”

But, perhaps because of those mythic roots and their ability to test the human psyche, they’ve exploded in popularity.