THE FOUNTAIN | How to Accept your Fate
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- Опубліковано 2 жов 2024
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I completely fell in love with The Fountain and was blown away by the various interpretation of the film and the strength of its emotion. It was also the most powerful and raw performance Iv ever seen from Hugh Jackman. In this video I tried to outline all the different ways of viewing this film, with a hope that people with find a perspective they connect to.
Darren Aronofsky's Commentary track of The Fountain, enjoy: • The Fountain - Darren ...
I love this film so much, the mystery, the emotion and the performances are amazing! As part of the research for this video I listened to Darren Aronofsky's Commentary track for the film: ua-cam.com/video/-aeCUFvZFYk/v-deo.html
Thank you so much for this. This is one of the best films I've ever seen.
I agree its a masterpiece and doesn't get enough attention!!
It's the rebirth within life before death for Tommy ... 🌲 Tree being Izzi who becomes the reason for Tommy's transformation.
the structure is very logic, emotions have their logic - I guess that's kind of what this movie is about, ironically
I think it's the best film ever.
No it’s not
You are correct
@@KonMann that's a 9-year-old comment, man. I miss my old self.
Not only was the movie phenomenal but the interpretation was so thorough and insightful, I'm so glad I came across it
Masterpiece. I watch it like savoring a loved poem, year after year...
I know, I'm sure I'm due for a re-watch soon!
Thank you so much for this. When I first saw the film in the theater I wasn't impressed but mostly because I was left confused. Now after seeing it several times on cable and DVD I have such a deep appreciation for this film and your explanation makes me want to see it a few dozen more times.
Thanks I'm glad you were able to take some meaning from the video. I agree i was a little confused on my first viewing but i never i had experienced something special and moving and wanted to share my thoughts on this film after some thought and research.
WHEN YOU CONNECT THE OLD MAN IN TH BED, MY HEAD BLEW UP
I liked that interpretation the most.
Carmichael it's not true. Tommy did it all. It's no book ether.
Whats the connection?
i think the old man serves to remind Tommy of his neglectfulness towards Izzy, i.e. not being with her.
The missing ring on his finger symbolizes the lacking presence of Izzie. Tommy is shown to be frightened at the prospect of losing Izzie.
From a Buddhist point of view you could say the bubble is a visualization of the mental meditative state of a Buddhist monk.
The longer he meditates the closer he gets to enlightenment. According to Buddhist teachings time and space become one when you get closer to enlightenment seeing all at once.
In the movie we only see 3 stories but every ring tattooed on his arm could signify yet another reincarnation. Just like the rings of a tree they symbolize lifetime cycles of that soul.
So the movie tells the story of the 3 important reincarnations: The first incarnation, the one where he starts his search for eternal life and the last one where we only see the mental journey as a meditating monk reaching enlightenment.
Other people will probably see yet another story. This movie is awesome :)
Yeah i like that idea, that he cycles his life 3 times in the 3 stories we see but at the end he reaches enlightenment. Great Masters have described the closeness to enlightenment as preparing to life without a body, thats why they can mediate for days without food as they are ready to move on, i like this idea because its the final stage Tommy reaches but it takes him lifetimes to get there.
Very good.
The entire story is based in Kabbalah. The one mind used the tree of life to become the many in spacetime duality. This was to escape the loneliness of a timeless all know existence. Adam and Eve symbolize the division of self and the union of duality. To search for our other half is an endless story of love and loss, thus is the human experience. Stop fearing the future and holding onto the past its the here and now that matters. When you realize that you can just enjoy the journey.
Its rather silly how people label things they don't understand as something left to personal interpretation. I see this when it comes to Tools music as well. In plain sight this story is told in many films and sung in many songs. Once you've studied the Mystery schools its undeniable. Phil Collins "in the air tonight" is the same story in a song. Trinity and Neo embody this endless loop of time where the two are forever united and torn apart by entropy which plagues the illusionary experience of spacetime duality. The point of the story is that all humans must come to understand they are alone in the end because there is really only one of us experience this story (enhance the meaning of Trinity's name). In the end the Atman must become ok with his nature in order to be free of his fear of it.
Ātman (/ˈɑːtmən/; Sanskrit: आत्मन्, IAST: Ātman) is a Sanskrit word that means 'inner-self' or 'soul'. In Hindu philosophy, especially in the Vedanta school of Hinduism, Ātman is the first principle,[1] the true self of an individual beyond identification with phenomena, the essence of an individual. In order to attain liberation, a human being must acquire self-knowledge (atma jnana), which is to realize that one's true self (Ātman) is identical with the transcendent self Brahman:
If atman is brahman in a pot (the body), then one need merely break the pot to fully realize the primordial unity of the individual soul with the plentitude of Being that was the Absolute.[2]
There is a great deal of understanding really needed to appreciate this film. what you've said reminds me of the idea of being alone in your self but at the same time being connected to the deeper life-force in us all called Self.Notice the capital 'S' and so our life is full of up and down emotionalise but once you realise that if you can quiet the mind and connect with that inner self then you are ultimately connection to the universe and the great spirits. This is why people believe in soul mates because they find someone who helps them see that deeper connection, but really i believe that you could be a sou mate with anyone as we are all made from the same source but sometime its just harder to see.
foleyd87 What you describe in the former is a fundamental in the mystery schools. You see Osiris/singularity was chopped into 12 pieces (individuality) by Set/void (darkmatter is the structural transport and housing of energy, forming energetic matter.) Osiris's parts were set in a box (spacetime cube) and placed in the tree (Tree of
Life) center of the two pillars of polarity. These 2 of 3 pillars that create current in a vacuum are adam and eve (duality) of the Kabbalah the tree at center is the 3 pillar which the SINe wave serpent of time travels up. The snake in the Garden offers man the ability to reawaken through the eating of the fruit of the tree of Knowledge "if you eat of it you too can be like God". Both trees are the same tree in Kabbalah ,depending on the direction of current consciousness travels (up, down) will indicate what tree your speaking of. God falling into micro cosmos is the" tree of life " and the ''tree of knowledge" is the fragmented God evolve into apotheosis ,man becomes god.
Now the initiate must pass into self actualization by a rights of passage.
Saturn space time cube is a birthing ground for consciousness Your false ego is a test to see if you can open your eyes. Your shadow self is a test to see if you can rise above yourself and become something greater than an object occupying space. Once you've developed the tools of special, independent thinking you are able to see life's truths. This causes an increase of synchronicity that relate to the mystery school teachings. The hardest discipline to develop is Christ mind consciousness. This requires one to unfold the 6 sided cube of material thinking and hang ones fleshly desires on the cross which once bonded you as a cube/box. Almost all religions are a watered down manipulation of Egypts mystery schools and most of the Mediterranean secret cults..
that second paragraph really spoke to me, i feel like I'm in the process myself as 'the seeker' of truth, thats one of my archetypes and I'm always trying to get past my ego and reach a place of truth and honesty which i feel is in harmony will my body rather than my mind and therefore the great spirits or universe.
It seems to me if you track all religions back they all originate out of Zarathustra. really interesting.
I watched this movie more than 10x already and yet I can still be surprised. It`s the first and only movie that had a seriously strong input in my life. I still watch it when I get really low, just to understand again how my problems mean nothing if I look at things as a whole not in detail. It`s everything I ever believed in :) Thank you for sharing with us
thanks I'm glad you were able to take some meaning from this video. i had a similar experience when first watching this film and it really affected me and moved me. I wanted to learn more about what i'd felt and how it happened, so this video is really the creation of all that questioning and thinking. great film!
What I love about The Fountain is the complement of the two characters Izzy and Tommy. Despite her illness and deterioration, Izzy is still enthusiastic. She's still discovering, learning, and creating even as she dies. Tommy is discovering, learning and creating but he is in despair. While Izzy is dying she is living. While Tommy is not dying he is so preoccupied with death he forgets to live. Tommy forgets what matters most - his love; he loses his ring to the Mayans and the wash sink. Tommy abandons his love to search for immortality, hoping to find eternal life together in love while choosing to be alone and apart.
Thanks im glad you liked it and im always glad to reach true fans of the film.
This is probably the most thorough and detailed analysis of the film I have encountered. Respect not just for making the effort to understand the movie (which most people don't do based on the "critics" reviews) but for sharing your insights as well! You've got yourself a new subscriber!
Thanks always great to have someone else who is interested in the meaning of great films join the community. The Fountain had such a profound affect on me that i had to understand it better and just tried to share why i loved this films so much as i feel some people miss the power of this films. but then again i do think it takes a certain type of person to really be ready to appreciate it and be at the right time in their lives.
Cannot agree more with you. The first time I watched the film was back when it came out and I was just 15. I enjoyed it, but I appreciated it just for the brilliant acting, music and direction. I couldn't really grasp on all the symbolism and themes behind it. I am glad that I accidentally stumbled upon it now, 7 years later, and gave it another shot. It was fully worth it.
yeah its really amazing how this film affects you the more you watch it and how you notice different elements on each new viewing.
Thank you for this brilliant analysis. This movie is also about the Goddess, the great female principle, illustrated by Izzy's ability to save and empower. Conversely, it is about the fear engendered by having a true relationship with another person, where vulnerability creates a confrontation: is one willing to give up egocentrism in order to make a true communion? Again, thanks.
wow those are some great points, you have to have a level of maturity to really appreciate this film i think. not in a sob by way, but in a life experience kind of way. i really like the idea of woman empowering this since the give birth and find it easier to live on and how men struggle with immortality more, maybe its because I'm a man and I'm bias. also the idea of being able to truly love someone means taking down all barriers of emotional protection and being completely vulnerable is so true! great points!
MUST SEE FILMS The movie is BRILLIANT ! Thank you for the review!
Excellent! I also feel Izzy gifted Tommy a pen and ink so he could also write his own destiny as she did. Also, her Character dressed in white as it reflected her enlightenment when she was free of fear. Her inability to feel hot or cold seemed that it was the end of her duality. I really love all the sacred geometry, use of color, sound, and emotions and it is beautiful.This film was ahead of its time. Most people do not care to go so deep. Keep up the great work!!! Erika
Thanks! i love the idea you mentioned about Izzi giving Tommy the ink, almost empowering him to write the rest. love it!
Good observation.
I recalled Robin Williams " What Dreams May Come " has the same deep hidden message with their use of color, theme, background, lighting etc. perhaps you might not wanna miss that one :)
Yeah iv seen it, its amazing and could believe that film was out there and i hadn't seen it til a few years back, i watched it around the same time as The Fountain, i was in that kind of head space at the time.
yes I agree that this film was and is way ahead of it's time.
Ben Sadikin I love that you recommended ''what dreams may come'' I had never seen it! thank you so much! It is amazing.
oh my right ear
I wish the audio were louder and clearer, I have to put the volume all the way up in order to try to make sense of the monotone. What I could grasp of the commentary, seemed like a good analysis though.
sorry, this video was made a good wee while ago and my knowledge of recording wasn't that great, there is a full transcription added to the video if you want to understand it all.
Thanks so much, this film is a total hidden gem, hope more people find some meaning in it!
Yeah i can see why, its pretty hard to grasp on 1st viewing, but i was so touched by it and knew the complexities would be there for a reason. Glad you enjoyed it.
Ladies and gents! We are totally forgetting the quote from one of our holy sources at the beginning of the movie. It is the key to it! The movie's plot is about the struggle of man dealing with mortal life since "eating" from the tree of life would have made him live forever and that was a major "no! no!" after becoming sentient and understanding right from wrong, if you remember well. The movie's main characters represent the Yin and Yang or the anima and animus of human nature. The affinity for each other is the drive in the struggle. "For my queen, for my wife, for my beloved. I'll search, I'll find and I'll conquer even death so that love is not taken away from me." (Get it?) In the end we come to understand that it is not a "tree of life" but rather a "circle of life." The movie presents this as a composite visual metaphor of three interconnected time lines. I think it is a breathtaking piece of work combining facts and cinematographic techniques with the talent and beauty of the actors. OK, that's my piece.
Arturo Castillo Bravo!!!
There is no ying/yang nonsense in the Bible.
@@1qwasz12
It is so because you choose to listen to the divine words from only one source. You listen to the "divine sound" with only one audio channel, one speaker, this is called monotone sound. Divine music must be heard in "surround sound" or multiple channels, several speakers. The divine words, the awe.
God is not human, so is not bound to space and time like you or me. So are her divine writings.
They were written at different times and different places. They exist in your time and they are available to you now.
Brain theory, that is PERFECTION.
The left side of our brain is the logical, straightforward and analytical center. It files and sorts and tries to make everything relateable. Tommy works and works on finding the cure. This brain side refuses to accept that death is inevitable. It is convinced something can be done.
The right side of the brain is the creative, intuitive, and imaginative part of our brains. Izzie is all those things. She does not feel the need to fight death.
Hey man, your analysis touched me more than the film itself - specially your third possible outcome, where it's about his life and he sees himself in his deathbed. That was real insightful!
Thanks man, its always awesome when i find other people who have been touched by this film, i loved it and it really affected me!
Same here :D
thanks for the great comments, i totally agree with you about this film being like the shining, i think its got some much hidden detail and will be appreciated later in time, im looking forward to Aranofsky's next project.
This is the best film analysis video out there, anywhere, ever. Seriously. Watch it. Watch it again. Watch the movie it pertains to. Weep like a baby and set yourselves free. Remember: the road to awe hurts like hell and there are no short cuts, but love lies waiting.
+Stephen Walker Thanks, glad you enjoyed this video on such an amazing film. Its an old video of mine now, so the audio isn't great but i hope the point still comes across.
+Darren - MUST SEE FILMS You're welcome. The sound is fine with loud headphones or good speakers, by the way, don't worry. And I rather enjoy your voice, as it goes: calm, serious, measured, intense. Don't change a thing. Perhaps you could do an expanded version of this video someday? Improve the sound and incorporate any new ideas, insights, feedback comments, etc. you feel the need to. Cheers, good luck and keep up the good work.
Your welcome, glad you liked it. The film really is awesome!
just watched the movie then this,deep deep stuff,had me in tears...a few years late but hey..been busy being shallow and not perfect ..i feel i have missed so much in my dark times..amazing movie..provoked a lot of thinking in me
Wow thanks, glad you enjoyed it. I was touched by this film and also in awe of what it was trying to communicate, i wanted to share this so more people could appreciate this hidden gem of a film.
I've watched it many times online but now think it will be worth getting the blu-ray for the director comments. Thank you for this enlightening perspective. It is truly a misunderstood film.
i like that interpretation, i like the idea of his mind figuring out how to deal with his emotions and bring him to a point of peace. I think alot of people stumble across this film, its a hidden gem im glad more people are beginning to discover.
yeah thats what i see it as. If you watch some of Aronosky's earlier work like Pi and requiem for a dream they are are very atmospheric and experimental and less about straight forward plot. Thanks im glad you liked the end, im glad people can take something for it.
Thanks I'm glad you like it!
Fantastic analysis of one of, if not the most profound movie ever made! I couldnt agree more with your final conclusion and was intrigued by the alternative interpretations I didnt think of myself. Every time I watch it I get more out of it and see it in a different way then before. Great job!
Thanks Andre, I made this video because i loved the film and the affect it had on me, sounds like its reaching people who have had similar experiences and appreciate the film, like yourself. glad you enjoyed it.
Thats awesome, its great to hear other people have such a strong connection to this film, i know it had a lot of meaning for me and i made this to share more about the film because i think alot of people missed how great it is. Your totally right this movie is a journey, i don't think everyone is emotionally ready for a journey like this that sinks into ones personal reflection and stirs up all sorts of feelings. I loved it, thanks for sharing!
Beautiful video to match a beautiful film. On first viewing, the future segments reminded me heavily of reincarnation, of Tommy's true being in a sense. It felt like Tommy was learning grace through multiple experiences of his life and upon finally acheiving it, grace was reflected at the end when he chooses to walk with Izzy instead of stay with his work and pay tribute to her by planting the seed. A sort of graceful end to the cycle followed by death and rebirth to begin the cycle anew.
Yeah ill agree with that, ill need to re-watch this film again after hearing all these great addition people have suggested. Iv discovered way more about the film and also how much it means to people. great point!
thanks, i feel like there are so many clues in this film and its just a matter of which you see first and believe.
Your way of thinking is impressive! Good job! I read an old interview of Mr Aronofsky about the Fountain and he stated that Tom is the last man alive in the future story. The title of the movie was originally called "The Last Man". Anyway, I believe that some things in the movie are completely up to the viewer. It's like a poem. Everyone can understand and see the allegories, but get a different meaning and feeling. For me, this is one of the most underrated films ever.
Darren Aronofsky has the ability to make us feel true feelings
He is a really great director
great great analysis of a great damn movie...my first time watching was captivated my soul.. aronofsky is pure genius...this movie is definetly a spiritual expirence...
I also believe that the tree is a metaphor of the spinal cord, the key to our intelligence and differentiation from the other living beings.
Thank you very much for this analysis. This is my favorite movie ever and you made me understand it from such different angles. I have to see it again haha. Aronofsky is such a genius.
The Akashic Records. Beautiful film. Love it...
The Fountain is one of the greatest movies ever made and it's sad that so many people can't or don't want to see it. I first saw this movie on HBO four years ago. I was 15 and at a point in my life where I felt like I was running out of time and needed to accomplish everything I dreamed of accomplishing as fast as possible. This film really captures the dark places our minds can go and the importance of focusing not so much on death but on these precious moments we have that we take for granted. A really profound and moving film. I never understood it fully before watching this video. I always picked up on the themes and felt satisfied with the wonder it gave me. I never felt like it needed explaining because, frankly, I hate it when films have to highlight everything for you. But it's nice to have the film analyzed to better understand such a masterful work. Great video.
thanks I'm glad you've been able to take something away from this video, The Fountain is an amazing film and i had a similar experience with it myself, and i wanted to share why i loved this film so much as i was surprised so many people don't like it, but i really think it means people just aren't ready to watch it, mentally or emotionally because it requires the right level of thinking to really enjoy.
foleyd87 Agreed :)
The music is gorgeous too and I love the black and gold theme everywhere.
im not sure, for me i think people are asked to question alot of themselves during the film to be involved in thinking about there own death and help them on their own journey of acceptance, but i don't think most people are ready to be that open and vulnerable.
Great work on these analogies.
For fans of these types of movies that leave a lot up to the imagination, try the work from Stanley Kubrick, Shane Carruth or Terrence Malick. Their movies appeal to open minded movie watchers. I recommend"The Tree of Life" or "Upstream Color". Enjoy =)
Scenic Approach I felt like it was a mix of all those films as well
It's popular to see birth as a celebration and death as something not to celebrate about in western society. In Tibet they actually try not to mourn too much so the soul could travel further on and not beeing stuck on Earth without a body. This movie seems like a masterpiece to me in a way how it show's transformation of the soul; while in one segment she is dying and in another, she is beeing reborn as a tree. Start and finish seem like illusions in people's heads instead of acknowledging we are on a journey..
Dude why are you whispering??
This is the amazing analysis of this film. It is my absolute favourite movie. Everything is perfect about it. I would bring up one more analysis. I liked to interpret this as if the conquistador represents the human body, in it's constant desire for youth, pleasure, violence, but also strong and able to heal itself. Tommy, the scientist represents the mind, that always rationalizing, solving puzzles and problems, and always disciplined. The future Tommy is the soul, that is immortal and pure.
I like the review very much, it's amazing :) btw, I always thought the character of Inquisitor was a way to criticize lifeless, legalistic religion as opposed to alive, real spiritual experience. In that sense, Conquistador might represent the joviality of early Christianity and its impulsiveness and self-sacrificing courage. I commend Aronofsky for avoiding the all-too-common bashing on Christianity as backward, sinister and misanthropic and defining the Eastern religions as superior by default. On the contrary, he found a way to emphasize the numerous internal similarities between the two (something called "Tao" by C. S. Lewis - a set of common values, immutable through time and space). The Tree of Life is an archetypical equivalent of the cross, and that is the main message of the film: attaining pure self-sacrificing love is the only way to a fulfilled life. A truly brilliant movie, and a sadly very underestimated one.
Yes, it would be very naive to think that one particular interpretation is the correct one. The viewer should come up with their own or pick their favorite. Meaning can only exist in the eye of a beholder, so what the viewer chooses is not to be underestimated. It's a truth to them as individuals.
Your voice is beautiful, and soft, and comforting. It suits this video very well! :) Just wanted to share that...
Im glad you enjoyed it, this is a film that i found fits my nature in alot of ways.
foleyd87 I've never actually seen the movie yet. I just came across it. I think I may watch it. :)
aww Chrissy, you need to watch it, Hugh Jackman is amazing and its quite a spiritual journey.
I think I will. Oh, and I was curious, are you Irish? :)
No I'm Scottish but have lived a dew places so my accent is a little neutral.
hmm i haven't seen that, ill check it out, thanks!
I AM IN AWE! AWESOME FILM! 10/10
Yeah it is definitely a moving film that challenges your thoughts and perspectives and i think makes some people uncomfortable, im sure thats a reason for it not having alot of success, but for those willing to be open and them the message be communicated through the story and music and emotions is a very moving experience.
Wow!! thats awesome! im soo happy to have made this analysis and have people like it but then also discover how much this film has touched people and how many other interpretations there still are about the film beyond what i had thought. Thats my favourite example so far, thanks for sharing!!
This was amazing. This is my favorite film and I've seen and read a lot of about. It doesn't matter if you like it or not. I think this film is a work of art. Simple as that. I agree with you when you said that this movie is more like a Journey to find what love means and how love builds the world.
Thanks Juan I'm really happy that my analysis has found its way to people who really understand and appreciate it, this film isn't for everyone but i had such an amazing experience with it i wanted t share how i felt about this incredible film.
I think another interesting detail in the film is the color white, in the present timeline we see Izzy dressed in all white and tommy in black, the snow, most prominently at Izzy's funeral, the sap from the tree of life is perfectly white, and the flowers that grow from it (and kill tommy) are white. Finally towards the end everything becomes more blinding and white until we get a white screen. I think white represents death in the film, but more importantly the acceptance of death, Izzy accepts it early on, tommy at the very end. His whole journey was not really to live forever but to accept the reality of death, the enlightenment you talked about. Also the initial credits screen (the white screen fades to) shows us something gold, organic and alive (much like a tree or a cell) slowly fading and withering to black, just to make the point extra clear.
Me personally I believe he really did it. It wasn't a chapter in a book. He ACTUALLY did it all. I also believe he at the end caused a nexus at the end when he was close to the star when he found his wedding ring. But he died and got to relive the nexus and got to walk with his wife at the first snow. She died only because he didn't understand he passed threw the nexus. And once he plant the seed on her grave. He would once again have to do it all again to change things and try to reincarnate her. But it's just my opinion! But it's all to up the viewer, it's reflection of whoever watches it and how far the watcher takes it. It's an rubix cube story. You solve it the way u want.
My interpretation is: The story of Tommy trying to save Izzi is reality, the story of the conqueror and the trip to Xibalba is Izzi's story, of how she sees Tommy focused on a fight where he will only find death. Both stories reflect the reality that Tommy refuses to accept, Izzi is going to die and there is nothing he can do to prevent it, it is the course of life and that is why she wants to spend most of her time with him.
When Izzi dies, Tommy takes the book and still doesn't accept reality, he still denies that Izzi is gone and that nothing he does is going to change it. It is almost at the end when he realizes this and decides to rewrite history, accepting that sooner or later he is also going to die and it will be inevitable. The scene where he returns to the beginning is the memory of Tommy accepting what he should have done at the beginning, spending the remaining time with her.
It's a wonderful and amazing film. I love it so much. I lost someone I love so this film touches my soul so deeply and so painful that causes a torrent of tears to come out every time I watch it. I think that's the reason why I understand the movie that way, because like Tommy, I'm also in the denial stage, I still don't accept that she's gone.
When your video essay is due the next day but you don’t want to wake your mates.
Awesome video btw!!!
lol thanks glad you enjoyed it, this is a really old video of mine and I still has a lot to lear about the audio recoding side of things, hopefully a lot better now.
Rogert Ebert didn't like this movie. Just goes to show that movie critics didn't know shit and still dont. Take their critique as grains of salt...in the tears of morons lol.
This was a lovely interpretation. I liked the quote you put at the end from Gita. It sums up what Aranofsky wants to portray in his movie.
Thanks glad you noticed and appreciated it, noone else has really mentioned that before. i thought it was appropriate. it is a wonderful film.
foleyd87 great movie really opened my eyes, you also mentioned a lot of stuff that i hadnt even thought about. keep up the good work
I thought of a line early in the movie. The grandfather died. A tree grew over his grave. A bird ate the berries then he became a part of the bird. Collapsing stars are the the source of every element in the universe. It is said we were all born in the hearts of dying stars. How I Interpreted the final scene was that when the star explored, he and Izzy would be joined and spread through out the universe to live a million lives together in a million different ways. It is said that we are the universe perceiving and experiencing itself.
I also find myself moved by this film every time i watch it. It really hits you in a personal kind of way because it makes you think and question a lot of things or so it does for me. I always recommend this film to people i know and it may be one of Aranosky's lesser known films but its still one of my favorites.
Great review. This is my absolute favorite movie, which isn't easy to decide since I love a LOT of movies, but if I could only watch 1 movie again in my life it would be The Fountain. It's always nice to come across other people who love it; it's truly a journey to see this movie, and since taking that journey I haven't looked back. I saw it for the first time while I was dealing with my own near physical death, and definite spiritual death. Aronofsky is an amazing director.
Just a quick note on the music, Clint Mansell and the Kronos Quartet also worked on Aronofsky's Requiem For a Dream" which had such powerful music. I think in the case of The Fountain, it would definitely be a different film without this particular score. Mansell seems to excel at something Bernard Hermann used to do, and that is have a musical score for a film that can both compliment and stand apart. Excellent music indeed!
Izzie wants to enjoy the rest of her life. She expresses herself through the book to see things in a different way.
I love the Brain theory. I love all of the theories really, they all made me go, 'aaah!' Thank you again for this video!
In this week of Roger Ebert's passing I remember how much I owe him for his review of The Fountain sparking my interest. I don't enjoy picking favorites or choosing top ten lists, but this is certainly one film I will keep in my heart forever. Thank you for your thoughts on the film.
If he had spent more time with Izzy he would have regretted not trying harder to save her life and if he didn't, he'd regret not having spent what time he could have, with her.
I know, crazy dilemma, tough film to watch!
SUPERB AWESOME FILM! Thank you for the analogy!
Very insightful. It is nice to know others show the same respect and reverence for this movie that I do. This is definitely a movie that requires multiple watches. Every time I watch, I come away with something different. And I have to say...your voice is very relaxing, but can still keep people engaged with what you are saying. You've got some really interesting interpretations.
Thanks I'm glad you were about to understand and take some meaning from my video. Im also glad this video is reaching true fans of this film, as i know its not for everyone and it really touched me as a spiritual experience.
It's an incredible peacefulness, a warm, calm feeling of freedom when you become enlightened and not only accept death but internalize it as a part of yourself. As a part of the universe, tiny fluctuations of energy changing from one form into another. Nothing is ever lost in the process, just transformed, consciousness, therefore pain is eliminated (finally) and replaced by nothingness which is a very good thing. And I'm looking forward to nothingness immensely.
very poetically put, apt of people enjoy this movie for what it is, but you seem to identify with some of the spiritual ideas that go along with it, well done, nice to hear from people who are closer to enlightenment of themselves. a journey i am still in the process of.
Kinda think that astro Tom and Tom creo communicate with one another. This spins the whol movie around but bear with me. Astro tom literally takes the ring from that sink while creo is in surgery, and from the conquistador after he allows himself to see him die, accepting the idea of death and ultimately gaining the closeness he should've had with izzy during his whole life when he was trying to fight death. This character is not logical, not written the be. So it's not a stretch to embrace mystical aspects of the times future Tom connects with preset day tom, and ultimately, changes the past of his own life and izzy's.
It is all inside this one moment where astro Tom embraces xibalba and transcends time and space.
We see him finally follow izzy out the door to join her in the first snow, and on that walk, izzy picks a seed from a gum tree and hands it to tommy. we see him plant that same seed over her grave. Its not a tropical tree from central america, that was the one astro Tom used for his ship.
No, he's done with that, he doesn't want to fight death anymore. It's just a regular sour gum tree. That is the new present day, and both tom creo who is insane with denial, and astro tom are gone, xibalba is still in the sky.
In the new present timeline he spent her final days with her properly, and honors her in death by acknowledging the story of moses' father becoming a tree, and and giving that to her. Then he looks up at xibalba with new understanding.
This is the most important part, he looks up at xibalba, and sees it explode and simultaneously vanishes. I also think this is literal. He cannot be if astro tom dies.
The final bit of proof for this is that in that same last scene when tommy wipes the snow from izzy's head stone, his ring is back on his hand. Astro tom was reborn specifically to right a wrong, to correct a mistake.
If you watch two other movies, arrival, the concept of future self informing the decisions of present self, and the discovery, the idea that when you die you are incarnated to specific point in your past life you most regret, in order to correct it, than this interpretation. Will come more easily to you. Thanks.
Your analysis made me feel like I slept through the entire film.....
I think its a film that enriches the viewers experience with further viewings of the film, the first time is like a brain melter and then once you know what to expect its a little easier to find some meaning. Glad I could help you see this differently.
It was a great movie. But my biggest problem with it was the message: Accept death.
That's not a great message..
I think its more to do with the process of being able to accept your own death, moving away from panic and stress and moving closer to the way of 'grace.' Similar themes were explored in Tree of Life. Thats my thoughts anyway, but this films is so open that I'm sure people will see it in all different ways.
very great!
The spanish conquistador is on a mission to find the tree of life so that he can live forever and avoid death, and tommy in the present is also trying to avoid the death of his wife and avoid the feelings associated with his own death, i think each little segment of this film is designed to have the same conclusion, and its that tommy must face his feeling on death. thats my thoughts anyway.
Yeah i know what you mean, i think the reason is because people are to uncomfortable being open enough to let this movie really affect them. The people who love this film have been really moved by it and for others i think they don't want to be vulnerable and brush this movie to the side, because the movie really asks you to go on an spiritual journey as some people have said in the comments, but not everyone is ready for that, like tommy at the start of the film.
Hey Joey, glad you liked the video. Its a very subjective movie, leaving itself open for multiple interpretations, however i think that when he drinks the sap it is the end of his journey when he is search for forever youth, showing us that it doesn't exist and finally he comes to term with Izzi's death by making peace with his own. But iv also heard it be taken as he is reborn but just back in the form of plants and par of the earth. hope this helps.!
Iv never seen The station agent, just watched the trailer thought and it looks good, ill need to check it out.
I love all those other films you mentioned, especially 25th hour, taxi driver and lost in translation.
Hopefully in the next few months ill get round to inception and blue velvet, plus im starting a podcast to review and recommend films, so i can do it less formal and more frequent cause i love talking and sharing with other film lovers.
i personally don't think he has time travelled but it could be an interpretation. I think he is more reliving the moments, maybe a fantasy, but i think its the outward representation of his inner emotions. so instead of him going back to live it again he is thinking back and wishing this was how he used his time. thats my take but the film is so open to any perspective that is only that way if you want it to be, i don't think theres a right or wrong, whatever your gut tells you is true.
Well alot of this film is very subjective and i think Aronofsky is trying to communicate a feeling or emotion more than a solid plot. However my take is that after going through his journey in all 3 time lines he now realises he should have been cherishing the time with Izzi rather than using it to try and save her, making the point that time/life is so precious.I think its a way of showing he has changed his way of thinking and fearing death. Hopefully you'll take some meaning from this,Thanks
Well alot of this film is very subjective and i think Aronofsky is trying to communicate a feeling or emotion more than a solid plot. However my take is that after going through his journey in all 3 time lines he now realises he should have been cherishing the time with Izzi rather than using it to try and save her, making the point that time/life is so precious. I think its a way of showing he has changed his way of thinking and fearing death. Hopefully you'll take some meaning from this,Thanks
Oh that's so unfortunate. I found it on v*meo. Such a shame W-B wouldn't go to the trouble to add an audio track after they'd already recorded it. It cost $35M to make and only brought in $16M total. Ouch.
Why do some people not like it, what is required to "Go on the journey"? If we wish others would appreciate the film, is it any way we can give them the key to do so?
Thanks, i agree some people have a hard time opening themselves up to understand this film because it makes them feel vulnerable. You can get Darren Aronofsky's commentray online if you search for it, the dvd doesn't have one because the studio didn't want one, but he made one and uploaded it online a long time ago.
Im glad your thinking of returning to this amazing film! Iv uploaded my transcript of the video, you can see it by clicking 'transcript', on the right of the 'add to' button, under the view count. This will show all the words im saying as the video plays. Sorry about the Scottish accent, not always the easiest for understanding.
Thanks, yeh i have actually, in-fact i even did all the research but while gathering more info i watched rob agers analysis of it and it basically said most of the things i was going to cover so i didnt want to repeat it. i think its only available on his dvd. Eyes wide shut is a great film though, there a few things i still might cover in the film.
Yeah totally agree a very spiritual and awakening experience, This video is probably my favourite to discuss with fans of the film because everyone who has seen it and cares about it are the people who find this video so Im always talking to true fans. always great to be able to share this film more. Aronofsky is a genius, well put!
yeah it is a commentary, the studio wouldn't let Aronofsky release a commentary so he recorded on by himself and uploaded it to the internet. Its pretty cool if your a fan of the film, just google 'the fountain commentary' and theres a few places to get it, maybe as a torrent or theres a vimeo video that has it too.
It has a meaning thought provoking haughtimg story
foleyd87 Could you possibly make an analysis of Richard Ayode's, The Double? There don't seem to be any good ones and your analyses are excellent. I would really like to better understand the film. Thank you!
Good choice!! i havent seen it, but iv been wanting to watch it and planning to see it soon!
I know, made it difficult for Aranofsky to get another film made, but despite its poor opening, its probably my favourite of his films. Also the studio wouldn't let him do a commentary track so he recorded it himself and uploaded it to the internet after the films release.
thanks, glad you liked it, this film is very special and although there are lots of films worthy of analysis with complex plots and visual work not all are build on such emotional material that i have been affected by. Im open to suggestions, id love to discover more films like this.
thanks, i don't think i was have noticed the great filmmaking in the fountain if i wasn't touched and moved by the film. The emotional connection came first and then i found more i wanted to share in the form of the film. glad you liked it. any other films you'd recommend?
i personally enjoy TWBB more than Magnolia because i like a story that revolves around a small intimate group, but still a big fan of magnolia. if you ever go back and watch TWBB and then watch the analysis let me know what you think because all the reason why i love it are in this analysis.
Yeh i agree the music is so powerful, i just put the soundtrack on my ipod and listened to it while working on the analysis. yeh im a massive fan of this film, its like a hidden gem because its not very well known, looking forward to seeing what he does next.
Yeah i agree it asks you to ask big questions of yourself, thats one reason i think alot of people are put off by it because there no ready to be open and vulnerable. I would say its maybe my favourite of his films, maybe The wrestler or black Swan next.
yeh i'd like to hear more of it too, i believe alchemy is the philosophical term meaning that you can chose you existence and whatever you can envision you can become, Will Smith always quote his favourite book of all time as the Alchemist.
I agree, if you let it this film takes you on a spiritual journey, through the story but by also inviting the viewer to search inward and ask themselves difficult questions and can alter you perspective on how you are living, very powerful.
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, iv got some new ones coming out soon. Yeah this movie took me ages to get my head around especially because its structure jumps all over the place, it makes it difficult to get a sense of place or time.