The Fountain Review

This is my second viewing of Darren Aronofsky’s The Fountain.  It’s been two years, perhaps more, since I saw it last, which, oddly enough, I think was good for me.  This is another kind of movie that has to be seen multiple times and needs time to be digested.  The film literally operates on multiple levels of time and space and though there are connections threaded between these levels (some obvious and others not so much), the viewer is expected to participate in the interpretation of these connections.  The film demands attention from the audience and rewards careful consideration with multiple open-ended interpretations.  The Fountain repays the viewer proportionally to the effort invested in it, which is fascinating in my opinion.

The Fountain essentially tells three very similar stories in three different time and space settings.  The Conquistador storyline is set in 16^th century Spain and Latin America.  Queen Isabel (whose life is in jeopardy at the hands of the Inquisition) sends Tomas the conquistador on a quest to find and claim the Tree of Life for his motherland thereby saving Spain.  The Scientist storyline is set in modern times and tells the tale of Tom and Izzy.  Tom is a frustrated researcher on the verge of discovering a cure for cancer, specifically the kind of cancer his wife, Izzy, suffers from.  The Astronaut storyline is set in outer space and tells the story of the titular character’s journey across the universe into a dying star.  The Astronaut is traveling in an ecosphere, encapsulated along with an enormous dying tree with which the astronaut speaks as though it were an intimate lover.

Without getting into specifics it is difficult to discuss what works and doesn’t work about the film.  I’m convinced after reading about it and seeing it again that nothing was put in here without careful consideration and planning.  There are things about it that I don’t understand, but I don’t think of it as poor filmmaking.  I think of it as something requiring thought and discussion.  This is exactly the kind of film to see with friends and debate interpretations because different people will view the movie in different ways and no one deduction is necessarily 100% correct.  I think it should be mentioned that Hugh Jackman’s performance is among the best I have seen.  The frustration, passion and emotional anguish his character experiences is entirely convincing and truly an accomplishment.  Having portrayed only Wolverine, Van Helsing and Leopold (from Kate and Leopold) up to the point when this movie was made, I feel this performance is truly where Jackman established his abilities as a dramatic actor.

Visually, the film is striking in several ways. The imagery, particularly from the Astronaut storyline is iconic.  The film’s lighting is done intelligently, frequently portraying Rachel Weisz’s characters awash in light while keeping Hugh Jackman’s characters hidden in the shadows until late in the film, when it becomes appropriate to light him more brightly.   Another subtle visual cue Aronofsky gives us is the use of simple shapes in specific time periods.  The 16^th century storyline makes use of triangular shapes; the present day story primarily utilizes rectangular shapes and the future storyline focuses on circular shapes.  Whether this has any significance beyond simply differentiating the time periods is open to interpretation, but I appreciate this kind of effort on the filmmakers’ part.

The Fountain has become one of my favorite films of all time.  I wasn’t quite sure what to make of it the first time I saw it, but after the second viewing I am almost entirely convinced it is a masterpiece.  There are bits that I need to ponder further and I’m sure that the conclusions I draw from it are at least somewhat unique to me, but I think that is the beauty of this film.  I love hearing how other people see it differently and how they reached those conclusions.  I love a film that is as open to as many different possibilities as this is, but I have to admit that it is not a film accessible to everyone.  Many people won’t enjoy this movie because its not easy to interpret, but I love it when a movie sticks with me after the credits roll.   The Fountain is one such movie.

10/10

The Fountain

Directed by Darren Aronofsky

Written by Darren Aronofsky, Ari Handel

Starring Hugh Jackman, Rachel Weisz, Ellen Burstyn

Cinematography by Matthew Libatique

Rated PG-13 for some intense sequences of violent action, some sensuality and language