A haunting and profound experience

Rating: 9/10 (26 November 2006)

My partner and I saw The Fountain last night. One of our tests of whether a movie is good or not is if it 'wears' well. Some movies I forget as soon as I see them. Other movies bring up a bad taste in my mind when I remember them. Others come back to me in various ways days or weeks after seeing them. The Fountain was such an experience for me. All through the day I kept remembering bits of the movie: the tone, the mystery, the journey. I wanted to tell people about the movie. This is another good sign. I have not read any reviews of the film, nor have I talked w/ anyone who has seen it other than my partner. I can hear some people saying now: "It doesn't make any sense!" or "What was that bubble? Why was he floating?" These are the same kinds of people who are better off seeing one of the 'Ernest' movies, in which everything is spelled out in numbing detail. I prefer a movie that leaves questions in one's mind. I like to be involved in the unfolding of what is on screen. I don't generally like, or trust, a director who feels it is necessary to explain and underscore every single significant moment in a movie, nor one who feels it necessary to wrap everything up in a cute Dickensian bow. There are two things I liked most about The Fountain. One is its beautiful imagery and creative use of myth. The other is its emotional rawness. If anyone has ever faced losing a loved one, s/he will know just how desperately helpless one can feel. It is incredibly easy to believe anything in a state of denial. It is also tragically easy to miss the most important thing that is always in front of us: the present moment. There were times in the movie when I felt like it was too much --- I felt many times like I needed to stop the movie and go somewhere and sob for an hour. This is probably what I will do when I watch the movie at home when it comes out on DVD. This is not an easy movie to watch. But it is extremely rewarding, if you open the part of your mind that allows mystery to exist. I highly recommend it.