Have you ever seen Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story?  Of course, you have.  On the off chance that you have not, I'll give you a brief synopsis.

In the movie, Bruce has this Demon that pursues him. The demon seeks to destroy him.  He encounters the demon in sleeping and waking dreams. The demon is much bigger than him, heavily armored and determined.

This plot device of the demon was taken from Bruce's real life. He truly did believe that he was being pursued by a supernatural force that was bent on his destruction for reasons that have yet to be explained.

In the course of the movie, he repeatedly encounters the demon and his only option--at least in his perception--is to avoid it, to run, to hide until the encounter is interrupted. This theme of avoiding what appears to be insurmountable appears quite often in film.  Other examples would be The Sixth Sense where the life of the young lead character "Cole Sear" is reduced to merely avoiding the "dead people" he has the gift (if you can call it that) of seeing and The Matrix where Morpheus' crew, when confronted by agents, simply run as fast as they can.  

Eventually, Bruce faces and engages the demon. However, Bruce dies quite young, at the age of 33, which many would consider to be premature.  Bruce's son Brandon, who also believed that he was being pursued by the same demon, also dies quite young.

Which brings me to the matter of Heath Ledger and co.

What happened to Heath?  A sensitive and talented artist dissolved into an incoherent mess. Unwilling or unable to live alone, he "chose" to stay at a friend's place where he met a suspicious and untimely death.

What happened to Britney? A vivacious and enthusiastic performer dissolved into an incoherent mess. Estranged and disconnected from her family, speaking in faux British accent we found her keeping less than savory company and crying hysterically whilst sitting on the curb.

What happened to Dave Chappelle? The funniest man on TV with the highest rated show on television left on a trip to Africa on a moment's notice without even informing his wife.

What am I saying? I'm getting there. Wait for it.

When Dave Chappelle was asked what lead up to his sudden trip to Africa he explained simply that he turned up at his office one day and there was a purpose-built stationery wall in front of his office door which separated him from the rest of the office.  When he asked who had put it there, he was told that he had requested the installation. He replied that he had not.  When he returned the following day, the wall was gone.  When he inquired as to who had ordered its removal, no one would admit that the wall had ever been there.

As if by magic, Britney has returned to glory.  Her much publicized behavior characterized as psychosis by the media has seemingly been forgotten, as though it never occurred.  Dave is alive and well, although sans his lucrative contract and the highest rate show on television.  And, Heath, well... Heath is no longer here.

In The Sixth Sense, Cole finds strength and peace when he begins to acknowledge the dead people he sees. In The Matrix, resolution is found in facing the agents.

Today, I am 35 years old. My mother died when she was 35. Her challenge was AIDs. My challenges are different, but I am almost there.