Wishing You Well

Rating: 8/10 (2 January 2012)

The Fountain is one of those movies so hard to review. Well, okay, for people like me that didn't fully get it. I mean, it's not the easiest thing to admit your ignorance.
All the way through this movie, and this is my first time watching it – 5+ years late, it reminded me of a more recent movie, Terrence Malick's The Tree of Life (2011.) In fact, not knowing anything about The Fountain, I thought this movie had Terrence Malick all over it. Not just for the subject matter – both spoke about the actual "tree of life" – but for the art direction, the mysticism and the space/inner-space journeys. But, alas, I was incorrect. The Fountain was Darren Aronofsky's baby.
I digress, The Fountain is a beautiful movie and somewhat deep – though, again, I didn't fully understand the message. As the movie progresses, if you can make it that far (I've heard of people all-but immediately stopping it, not giving it a chance), it slowly, but surely reveals the jumps in time-periods. I counted three separate story lines.
The Past. Seems like the Dark Ages – but, then, what do I know – and a man's journey to find the Mayan's "secret" Tree of Life, the original one from the Garden of Eden.
The Present. A Man and His Dying wife. Here's the tad bit clichéd, but effective story of a doctor (Jackman) doing everything (albeit mad) he can to cure cancer to save his wife who's on her deathbed, pretty much.
The Future (??). This part kinda reminded me of a Pixar short. A man (could be that same doctor??) in a snow globe (??) heading into space and into a dying star.
That last part might throw off a lot of people. It sure as hell did the trick on me.
Unlike the more recent The Tree of Life, mercifully, this is only 90 or so minutes, verses the 139 agonizing minutes of Tree. Also, The Fountain got to the point faster where Tree was all over the place and a minute few walked with a new meaning of life.
I'm not sure what the meaning of The Fountain really wasbut that's okay. It was entertaining, mesmerizing, had fantastic cinematography and a beautiful score. I just wish I "got" it more.
Perhaps the person that recommended it to me could fill me in a bit. Hint, hint.