I rarely go to the movies by myself. Ironically I'm not the type of person that goes to the movies to socialize either. I rely on my Movie Crew, a tight group of people who love movies as much as I do. For some reason this weekend my movie crew abandoned me. Some of them were not in Sci-Fi mood, and this movie looked
Sci-Fi, others were not in the mood for Romance, and this movie had that romantic feeling of holiday season tear jerker.Others were missing in action, believing, perhaps that the movie will bet here next week, after all it is Hugh Jackman... I went by myself on a hunch that non of these expectations were true. I was not disappointed.
The thing about going to the movies by myself is that I am forced to socialize. To size up the people in the audience as I make my way to the theater. There were two teenagers in the upmost corner (nope... they are here for makeout reasons) Couple of college girls in their twenties with their respective boy friends (girls came for the love story line, guys came for either a glimpse of Rachel Weisz, or worse, they were forced to come after they dragged their respective girlfriend to X3) An elderly couple ( too sweet for me to comment) and a pair of nerds that were raving about Anorofsky (Bingo! Although I was in danger... they might smell that I haven't seen Pi yet)
I made my way and sat near the nerds at a safe, non invasive distance. By the time the lights went out , there were about 40 people in the theater. About one third of them were gone by the time the movie ended. This is what I saw along with the 20 odd people that were left in the theater.
NO SPOILERS, means I loved it, and it's hard to love something that so many people are finding ridiculous, petulant and void of sense. I will not apologize for this movie but I might as well tell you what NOT to expect, so you will not be one of the unfortunates to walk out with a quizzical expression.
This movie is NOT
- 2001: Space Odyssey: The Sci-fi elements- whether you believe they are grounded in the "reality" of the story line or are figments of a character's imagination are purely symbolical. The difference resides in the use of the imagery. While Kubrick set us on the path of THE QUEST, reaching out for the audience and demanding of his characters to produce an answer to the most complicated question ever- what are we doing here?-, the answer to the question posed by The Fountain is simple. We know how it has to end, it is a matter of following a character who hasn't yet figured it out and be there when he finally gets it.
- Love Story: You don't get to follow the progression of the characters, you don't see them fall in love, you don't get and idea of what their lives were before the event that triggers the movie. As an audience, we are thrown into the lives of a couple that is trying to cope with the worst of situations. Their love is tested beyond "never having to say you are sorry". The trial is here and now, the revelation that comes out of this test is perhaps my favorite subject in film and literature... the choices we make and the chances we take are ours forever. After all is said and done, you take what was good, regret what wasn't and do your best to forgive yourself for not making it better when you could.
- Highlander: Perhaps the biggest mistake the studio made when marketing this movie was coming up with the tag line "What if you could live forever?" This movie is not about immortality, it is about letting go. It's a movie about death and how beings that can conceive eternity in their imagination are faced with the hard reality that life cannot go on forever. It is a movie about grief and how it can either destroy us if we don't know how to deal with it, or be a welcomed part of the healing process after we have lost someone.
Minor spoiler about characters and setting ahead...
There are three men in this movie. They are the same character facing different situations. The way I see it, one man is grounded in reality while the other two are paths laid before him.
There is a man in the Spanish Golden Age who is taking part in a Quest. He has a motive to achieve his goal. He is not afraid of death because he has found a purpose and a foundation for his life. He shelters and protects a woman, who is most of all, desperate under her calm demeanor. His tragic flaw, he is defiant of death, which is as absurd as being afraid.
There is another man, whose life is a void. He travels to the ends (or the beginning) of the Universe. Around him stars explode in golden shades and life surrounds him. He doesn't care. He is alone, holding on to a woman who is no more, feeding off her. She keeps him alive, he has nothing and his shadow darkens the universe of color around him. He lives in a world were memories and regrets, stretch into eternity.
Trapped between them is a man who is much in love with a woman. The woman is dying and has come to terms with it. He hasn't. She wants to make sure she leaves him where he is meant to be, at her same level of acceptance and understanding, but she is gone too soon and leaves him at a crossroad, in front of an open book, with the worst task to be completed by someone who doesn't want to let go... FINISH IT.
The acting was superb, the visuals stunning, although something tells me it will not make it to any particular awards list. It's a shame, because Jackman was at his best. This is the most awesome movie no one will see this year.
I'll leave a quote that I find to be related to this movie, which to me is a treasure....
"You are mortal: it is the mortal way. You attend the funeral, you bid the dead farewell. You grieve. Then you continue with your life.And at times the fact of her absence will hit you like a blow to the chest, and you will weep. But this will happen less and less as time goes on.
From SANDMAN: "The Song of Orpheus"
No comments:
Post a Comment