4/30/2023 0 Comments Im thinking of ending thingsThewlis masks himself in a thick mumbled accent that is equal parts inviting and intimidating. Colette plays the mother role with almost a community-theater level of theatrics. The performances continue with the “stage play” nature of the film. But saying that any of Kaufman’s work is “most accessible” is like saying “the easiest marathon.” Half of the fun of I’m Thinking of Ending Things will be in seeing the reactions of Netflix users who just finished Tall Girl 2: The Legend of Curly’s Gold and are pulled out of the movie playing in the background while they are on their phone only to begin promptly drowning in Kaufman’s world. The acting and direction seem to be projecting loudly toward the balcony, trying to find steady footing between subtlety and delicacy. I’m Thinking of Ending Things feels very much like a stage play. For all its shifting plot and uneasiness, Kaufman seems to want audiences to understand the inner-machinations of the story more than in his other two films. In a lot of ways, I’m Thinking of Ending Things is Kaufman’s most accessible film as a director after 2008’s Synecdoche, New York and 2015’s Anomalisa. Some viewers attach themselves to his work, finding either a deep connection to the material or at least the emotions the material pushes against. His works tend to blur the line between drama, comedy, and a dry sense of psychological horror in a way that makes them more of a Rorschach test than a film. Like all of Charlie Kaufman’s work, I’m Thinking of Ending Things is a delightful mess. As the heavy snow continues to fall outside, Cindy just wants to get out of the house and her relationship. There is a sinister element that Cindy can’t quite figure out. Photos on the wall look both foreign and familiar. Every room that Cindy explores in Jake’s parents’ house seems to change, like something out of a dream. Jake’s father, Dean (David Thewlis), shifts from warm conversation to cold judgment. Jake’s mother, Suzie (Toni Collette), switches between being maniacally inviting and emotionally fragile. When they arrive at Jake’s childhood home, there seems to be an uneasy melancholy everywhere. Their conversation is stilted and shallow, only becoming involved when they talk about art or her career. It is never less than enthralling, but never much more than that, either.Īs Cindy (Jessie Buckley) rides in her boyfriend Jake’s (Jesse Plemons) car, she repeatedly returns to the fact that she doesn’t really like him. Like his other films, I’m Thinking of Ending Things is overlong and slightly meandering, with occasional moments of brilliance overshadowed only by its eye-rolling knowledge that it is, in fact, occasionally brilliant. Audiences walk away from his works having maybe not fully understood them but likely having felt them. Kaufman regularly mixes the harrowing idea of depersonalization with the comparatively minuscule elements of human relationships. I’m Thinking of Ending Things, directed by Charlie Kaufman and adapted from the book of the same name, is yet another example of the writer-director’s strongest and weakest storytelling traits.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |