Year of Release: 2020
Director: Charlie Kaufman
Starring: Jessie Buckley, Jesse Plemons, Toni Collette, David Thewlis, Guy Boyd, Abby Quinn, Hadley Robinson, Gus Birney, Colby Minifie, Jason Ralph, Anthony Robert Grasso, Teddy Coluca
Genre: Drama
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
Synopsis and Review:
Following the wonderful "Anomalisa", writer/director Charlie Kaufman returns, with his adaptation of the book by Iain Reid "I'm Thinking of Ending Things", which has been produced and distributed by Netflix. The film focuses on the story of a young woman who is about to embark on a road trip with her boyfriend Jake, in order to meet his parents. This roadtrip takes place during a severe snow storm, and while getting to their destination, she is contemplating the dissolution of the relationship. Upon arriving at Jake's parents farm, she starts noticing the odd behaviors of the parents. What ultimately ensues and develops is a journey through perceptions, relationships and the ambitions a character set for himself, that never came to fruition.
One of the most interesting and unique traits of Charlie Kaufman as a writer/auteur, has been his ability to capture the uniqueness of relationships, but doing so through distinguishable metaphors that are universally understandable. His narrative mechanisms, have always been uniquely attuned to capture how people's minds and hearts function, how his characters expectations are illustrated, and how reality at times comes crashing down all around them, and the impact that it has on their capabilities to cope with that reality and ultimately their ability to exist and move past whatever is thrown at them. "I'm Thinking of Ending Things" is another interesting journey through someone's perception of his own life, of relationships that were wished upon and never happened, and the pain that someone carries with them from ages ago. It's a film that is filled with wonderful moments, brimming with intelligence and a cinematic touch that is just beautiful (woven through the blizzard, those moments at the farm, the restaurant, the high school are just fantastic), at times bringing back some of the influence or touches from Michel Gondry (who directed "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" of course). However there are times in the narrative, where the script feels almost too self centered on itself, and on its author's interests, alienating the viewer - the cerebral aspect of it, makes it almost impossible to connect with, which is ultimately where this film is less successful than "Anomalisa" for instance. For all its intelligence, ability to depict the reflection and to look back on the character's past, it fails to generate warmth in that cold tundra, it fails to ably create the sense of humanity that has always existed in all of his features. Yes, all of his heroes have always ultimately pursued a connection, a longing for love and acceptance, but in this case, his hero feels undeveloped, and strangely stunted. It's a film that is filled with interesting ideas, but one that is easier to admire than to love. Jessie Buckley, Jesse Plemons, Toni Collette and David Thewlis are all committed and wonderful, however their characters are reflections or projections, and never fully realized. It's an interesting journey from a unique voice in film, one worth embarking on.
One of the most interesting and unique traits of Charlie Kaufman as a writer/auteur, has been his ability to capture the uniqueness of relationships, but doing so through distinguishable metaphors that are universally understandable. His narrative mechanisms, have always been uniquely attuned to capture how people's minds and hearts function, how his characters expectations are illustrated, and how reality at times comes crashing down all around them, and the impact that it has on their capabilities to cope with that reality and ultimately their ability to exist and move past whatever is thrown at them. "I'm Thinking of Ending Things" is another interesting journey through someone's perception of his own life, of relationships that were wished upon and never happened, and the pain that someone carries with them from ages ago. It's a film that is filled with wonderful moments, brimming with intelligence and a cinematic touch that is just beautiful (woven through the blizzard, those moments at the farm, the restaurant, the high school are just fantastic), at times bringing back some of the influence or touches from Michel Gondry (who directed "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" of course). However there are times in the narrative, where the script feels almost too self centered on itself, and on its author's interests, alienating the viewer - the cerebral aspect of it, makes it almost impossible to connect with, which is ultimately where this film is less successful than "Anomalisa" for instance. For all its intelligence, ability to depict the reflection and to look back on the character's past, it fails to generate warmth in that cold tundra, it fails to ably create the sense of humanity that has always existed in all of his features. Yes, all of his heroes have always ultimately pursued a connection, a longing for love and acceptance, but in this case, his hero feels undeveloped, and strangely stunted. It's a film that is filled with interesting ideas, but one that is easier to admire than to love. Jessie Buckley, Jesse Plemons, Toni Collette and David Thewlis are all committed and wonderful, however their characters are reflections or projections, and never fully realized. It's an interesting journey from a unique voice in film, one worth embarking on.
0 comments:
Post a Comment