Some movies are like a novel. You will receive a weekly newsletter full of movie-related tidbits, articles, trailers, even the occasional streamable movie. What is the movie's message? I'm actually the opposite of a drama fan- but this movie really touched me, and although it's quite tough to take in, I loved it. By the final frame, none of them will be the same as they will learn harsh truths about love, faith, courage, desire and guilt, and how chance can change our worlds irretrievably, forever. By the time we've sorted out the plot threads, we've identified with all three characters on an emotional level while at the same time understanding their faults.
Penn plays a critically ill mathematician, Watts plays a -stricken mother, and Del Toro plays a ex-convict whose faith is sorely tested in the aftermath of the accident. By the end of this film, the story turns out to be quite straightforward. He's been rehabilitated through religion, but he's still far from perfect. These people are trapped in their own limited worlds, and with our omniscient viewpoint we can scarcely blame any one of them for their feelings or actions. You wonder if Inarritu took you the long way around, running up mileage on his storyteller's taxi meter.
That people shouldn't be so quick to judge others? He is released after Cristina declines to press charges, as she realizes that putting Jack in prison will not bring her family back. Cristina Peck is a recovering drug addict and now lives a normal suburban life with a supportive husband and two children. If life is fragile, then it's also precious, and people need not waste their time on vengeance. The metaphorical context is the fleeting nature of each heart's temporal beat and our desperately valiant struggle to flesh out our mortal hearts' desires. Paul collapses, gets hold of the gun, and shoots himself. Since I saw only one person exit the theater, for any reason, in the 125 minutes running time, I conclude that the fully occupied theater was as riveted as I was, even to the point of extreme bladder control.
I guess the story itself is not that new, but the way how it's done is simply excellent. Jack tells the police that he was the one who shot Paul, but is released when his story cannot be confirmed. He is dying of a heart condition, needs a transplant, is badgered by his wife to donate sperm so that she can have his baby -- after his death, she does not quite say. Though Paul has a new heart, his body is and his outlook is grim. How much does life weigh? This is not a film for either the faint of heart or lazy of mind. These people are trapped in their own limited worlds, and with our omniscient viewpoint we can scarcely blame any one of them for their feelings or actions. I felt like I was watching a mystery, but after everything came together it became evident that none of the mystery was contained in the plot itself.
What is the movie's message? They will be brought together by a terrible accident that will change their lives. While the film is a virtuoso accomplishment of construction and editing, the technique has its limitations. That people shouldn't be so quick to judge others? Sean Penn plays a 40-something man with a failing heart, Naomi Watts plays a young woman facing great tragedy, and Benicio Del Toro plays an ex-con consumed by guilt. Directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, he gives the audience the puzzle unraveled, demanding that we piece together the story from interlaced past, present and future events. Some movies are like a poem. He is simply understandable on a very basic human level, as are the other two characters. Paul is eager to begin normal life again, but he hesitantly agrees to his wife's idea of surgery and artificial insemination as a last-ditch effort to get pregnant.
Many movies in the modern era have experimented with fractured chronology, but most of the time this technique is used for entertainment purposes only. Benicio Del Toro is Jack, a former convict who now rules his family with firm fundamentalist principles. But in the closing passages, as the shape of the underlying structure becomes clear, a vague dissatisfaction sets in. Desperately needing one another, they continue their relationship. The answers do come after a while.
He is using Jesus as a way of staying off drugs and alcohol; his wife is grateful for his recovery but dubious about his cure. I felt like I was watching a mystery, but after everything came together it became evident that none of the mystery was contained in the plot itself. Paul Rivers is a mathematics professor with a dedicated wife, Mary Rivers, and a fatal heart condition. As Cristina begins to dwell more on her changed life and the death of her girls, she becomes obsessed with exacting revenge on Jack. The dramatic cortex is the human heart-lost, gained, tormented, anguished and confused.
This truly is a masterpiece script-wise, and I've never seen anything like it. I just appreciated that the film resisted the temptation to make him into a caricature. It allows moviegoers to see actual events first, then form associations later. The film stars , , , and. The pieces do ultimately fall into place.