A story about love void of humanity

Rating: 6/10 (15 December 2006)

Darren Aronofsky is not what one would call a clone of Tom Shadyac. His films are challenging and intellectual, but not funny. In fact, in three features, I hardly recall a humorous moment in any of them.
That didn't stop Pi and Requiem For A Dream from being excellent films. But something is holding back The Fountain, Aronofksy's ambitious third feature. In brief, it is about a scientist (Hugh Jackman) working on a cure for a brain tumor that is killing his wife (Rachel Weisz). His wife is writing a book called The Fountain, about a conquistador's quest for the Fountain of Youth in a hidden Mayan temple in 16th century Central America. The story in the book is also told using Jackman as the conquistador and Weisz as his obsession, the queen of Spain. At a critical time in his wife's illness Jackman may not only have found a cure for the tumor, but for aging itself, using a compound from a Central American tree. Fast forward to an undetermined time in the future, when a bald Jackman, seemingly the now immortal scientist, is on a space trek with the tree to a star called Xibalba by the Mayans. Xibalba is a golden hued star, its color due to the fact that it is dying and wrapped in a nebula of dust. Xibalba represented to the Mayans the place our souls go when we die. "How interesting the ancient Mayans should have chosen a dying star to represent the doorway to the afterlife" Izzy muses to her husband as she approaches death. Why Jackman is going there is not yet clear, and will (presumably) be explained as the stories about the scientist and the conquistador unfold.
The story is not linear, opening with the conquistador's quest, with all three time lines jumping back and forth. Visually the film is beautiful. The golden nebula, and Jackman's isolation with the tree in their spaceship on his lonely journey is especially striking.
I found a couple of elements missing, however. For one, although Weisz performance is fine (and she is not asked to do much other than be beatific and look beautiful) Jackman's character is so obsessed with his cure that almost all of his interactions with other people involve anger, including when Izzy wants to go for a one last walk with him in the snow. Since the bulk of the story is scientist Jackman's quest for a cure, for most of the movie we are watching an obsessed and humorless man barking at others who are trying to help him. This reduces the interest and sympathy for the main character.
Second is the aforementioned lack of humor. Even in 2001's clinical darkness, Kubrick manages to inject humor (in particular Bowman's haggling with HAL after he has been locked out of Discovery, and the Hal's pleading when Bowman gets back on board). In The Fountain everything is so deadly earnest that the humanity drains away. We see Jackman's obsession more than we feel his love. Even in the one scene where he winds up in the bathtub with Izzy, it felt like he was in a hurry to get back to the lab.
The ending is ambiguous. What does Jackman hope to gain by visiting Xibalba? Why must the tree go? Is the tree the representation of Izzy or is it actually Izzy? Is it his regrets over not taking that last stroll in the snow with her that drives him? When he does reach Xibalba, what is the outcome of the action? Is he there for the star, or for him? I will not spoil the ending by saying what actually happens, but it is never fully explained.
However I have to respect Aronofsky's ambitions and skill, and his persistence (this project was shelved more than once, for years, especially after Brad Pitt walked out only a few weeks from shooting). Aronofsky is a talented filmmaker, and the Fountain, if not a classic, is certainly a welcome addition to his oeuvre.