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Diane and I watched The Fountain Friday night. I had been eager to see it for several months, ever since a discussion at work with a fellow film buff. I hadn’t seen any of Darren Aronofsky’s other work (nor do I want to see Requiem for a Dream), but having heard the director’s penchant for taking on challenging material, read the description of the movie and seen the trailer, my interest was definitely piqued.
The film was visually beautiful; that much I can say. The cinematography was arresting, consisting almost entirely of symmetrical zooms and detail shots, with little side-to-side panning, and the way Aronofsky used all the filmmaking tools at his disposal (visuals, sound, editing, narrative, etc) to advance his theme was admirable. I love films that are fleshed out by more than just rote dialogue. One scene in particular was remarkable: Hugh Jackman’s character experiences a traumatic event, is shown leaving the building and passing through scenes of incredible cacophony, but all we hear is a subtle heartbeat. It illustrated his character’s introversion and devastation very well.
The film takes place in three time periods, ~1500, ~2000 and ~2500 A.D. and scenes from all three are interwoven. Themes like death as it relates to the nature of humanity, eternal life, creation, and reincarnation are central. It really is a grab bag of worldviews and philosophies and demonstrates many things, among them how desperate we are to answer these questions in our lives, especially when things we care about are at stake, and certainly also that pure materialism does not, and will never fully explain who we are and where we came from.
There is an affecting love story central to the film. One could almost call it the vehicle through which its metaphysical statements are made. The characters experience the whole gamut of emotions and in a way our ability to grasp the philosophical implications of the film is tied to our ability to relate to the characters. A.O. Scott of the New York Times makes a good observation on that point:
The director gives his main actors very little to do. Since their job is to embody a paradoxical romantic axiom — lovers may die, but love never does — they are trapped within a narrow range of emotions. Ms. Weisz’s role is to glow and sigh, while Mr. Jackman registers various forms of anguish and desperation. The intensity of their feeling never breaks the surface, and the frame encases them like a vitrine. It’s hard to sympathize with their hunger to overcome death, since neither one is credibly alive to begin with.
Interesting film. Diane and I agreed that it’s one Schaeffer would have watched. Definitely representative of the prevailing philosophical trends of the times, and worth watching if for no other reason than that.
You inspired Kristi and i to go to Blockbuster and rent The Fountain. Unfortunately it was Memorial Day weekend and the two Blockbusters around here were both sold out of it, as well as Apocalypto (which we also wanted to see). Hmph. But that’s ok…we can always find other fun things to do for date night. ;-b
John D.
Do check it out if you get the chance. A neat little tidbit is that none of the special effects are computer-generated; that is, they’re all old-school optical effects, a la ’80s sci-fi movies. Gives them a warmth (if you can call it that) you rarely see with George Lucas-style digital hoopla.