Movie Reviews
In �Citizen Kane,� Bernstein, Kane�s right hand man, says during an interview, �Old age. It�s the only disease you don�t look forward to being cured of.� �The Fountain� identifies another unstoppable disease, death, and asks if there even is a cure for it.
I�ve got my own firm opinion about Darren Aronofsky�s �The Fountain,� but I�d be lying if I didn�t tell you that I was too anxious to see what other critics had to say about the film. And in doing so, my opinion has not changed, but I�m incredibly surprised at how divided the critics are. Where Dave White of movies.com seemed to think it was very complex, TV Guide thought it was �painfully simplistic.� And while Peter Travers of Rolling Stone found �The Fountain� to be �arty, pretentious psychobabble,� he�s been known to hail a similarly arty, pretentiously psychobabbling �2001: A Space Odyssey.�
In bombarding you with all those opinions, let me supply mine: �The Fountain� is a great film. And not only a great film, but one of the greatest. No, I�m not just saying that because I�m young and na�ve and don�t know anything about movies. Without boasting (I do have a lot to learn), I know a thing or two about the movies. �The Fountain� simply happens to be a really wonderful film.
It also happens to be a labor of love from its creator Darren Aronofsky, whose six-year hiatus has not been intentional. Aronofsky is an independent filmmaker, the type of director who will always make films as if he has no budget (even if he does). Big studios don�t like independent filmmakers. They�re too abstract. They want to make the film their way. They must be forced into submission. Aronofsky is not one to submit.
Accompanying a boggling script is a perfectly selected cast and an achingly beautiful score. Hugh Jackman delves into some terrible side of himself to display a character whose obsession we share by the end of the film. Clint Mansell�s score, performed by the ridiculously talented Kronos Quartet and the unique Scottish band Mogwai, breathes precious life-sustaining beauty into the film. There�s never been a score like this.
In hindsight, �The Fountain� is the story of Dr. Tommy Creo (Hugh Jackman) and his quest to save the life of his wife Izzi (Rachel Weisz). Quest, actually, is not the right word. You see, Izzi is about to die and Tommy is working desperately to find a cure for her disease. His journey takes him past the limits of time, and over a period of 1000 years, Thomas/Tommy/Tom Creo searches for the Fountain of Youth.
Trying to explain more of the plot would be pointless; it�s a film of boundless invention and fascination. The visuals are stunning, ranging from sunrises atop ancient Mayan ruins, to modern-day snowy landscapes, to golden nebulas exploding in the sky. And all of it contributes to the story, which, not surprisingly, follows an abstract set of rules about time, love, and death.
�The Fountain� asks a lot of relevant questions about our existence. How important is love? What is the will of man in comparison to the will of God? Is there a cure for death, and does man have any right to seek a cure for such a thing?
Aronofsky is not necessarily attempting to answer these questions, although they are analyzed. Through ancient Mayan legends, highlights from the book of Genesis, and a startling vision of our future, Aronofsky cycles through a story of such monumental meanings and revelations that it would be inappropriate to end the film with a clean cut conclusion. It�s a film that displays Aronofsky�s wisdom as a filmmaker and, in general, as a human.
I wouldn�t mention his other films, �Requiem for a Dream� and �Pi,� except to point out � among countless differences � one important similarity between the three. Each film, through its own smorgasbord of style and intent, pits its characters against the same dilemma. Whether it�s procuring happiness through addiction, finding faith in chaos, or exacting a belated cure for death, Aronofsky�s characters are searching for something they can�t get without great sacrifice.
So in the end, maybe that�s exactly what �The Fountain� is about. Sacrifice. ****
Note: There has been confusion over the rating of �The Fountain.� It�s been advertised both as PG-13 and R. According to various websites, the film was reedited from R to PG-13. Understanding that it was in fact PG-13, I was surprised to be carded at the box office and to see the poster sporting a large R at its bottom. It�s debatable what version I saw. There were some very violent images � some of which I�d recommend for an R rating. But there was also only a single �F� word, a common trait of PG-13 movies.