Depending on the perspective of the viewer, The Fountain may well be about any of the following: obsessive love; the human desire for immortality; man's search for knowledge; spiritual awakenings; or the healing effect of personal forgiveness.
Just don't ask me what it's about, because I'm not certain I know. Hell, check out the Wikipedia synopsis of the flick. It's an interesting read.
Starring Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz, The Fountain is three tales in one. The intersecting stories follow a 16th century conquistador, a modern day scientist and an astronaut from the far future as each attempts to free his love interest from political, biological or spiritual death. Woven together and progressing toward a common conclusion, each story is compelling and complex. Director Darren Aronofsky frames the movie so that much of the complexity is told in a subtle fashion, through imagery and visual effects.
Like Aronofsky's Requium For A Dream, there is no tidy ending designed to make the audience happy. The story stays true, and leaves more questions than answers. Which is mostly the reason I liked it as much as I did.
The Fountain isn't for everyone. If you aren't comfortable being unsure where a movie plot is taking you 45 minutes in, this is not the flick for you. If you enjoy complicated and colorful puzzles, pick this one up.
3 comments:
I've been meaning to watch this again ever since I saw it on the big screen. I even went so far as to buy the graphic novel, but, um, never got around to reading it.
But after reading your review, I might just get to it.
I'm curious if you think this really is a story that spans three timelines. I think only one of them is "real," while the other two are in the main character's mind. But maybe that's a "no duh" theory. Unfortunately, I can't find out because no one else I know has seen 'The Fountain.'
Let me know what you think after seeing it!
For much of the film I thought Jackman's character was the same person, who became immortal. Near the end, though, I swerved to the idea they were three seperate men. Two could be in the mind of the astronaut, however...It was a strange, strange flick.
I was left thinking that Hugh Jackman had found the key to eternal life, the past was a story/parable/tale and the "present" was the real past...something like that.
I was also left thinking why choose an Aussie and a brit for two American roles... :-p
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