The Fountain…

Posted on Aug 16, 2007 in Films/Theatre | 2 comments

It’s a fountain alright… of crap.

Maybe that’s a bit harsh. The 2006 film was ambitious but ultimately falls apart. The Fountain really is a vehicle for Hugh Jackman to show audiences (well, those that skipped the Meg Ryan snoozer Kate and Leopold) that he’s more than just scruff, muscles, and adamantium claws as Wolverine.

The story is all over the place, jumping between three timelines: 16th-century Spain, the present (presumably in the US), and–according to the film’s synopsis–the 26th century, though how anyone would know that is beyond me. Jackman’s character and his co-star, Rachel Weisz, share a love intertwined in these lifetimes. On paper, I bet this premise worked; the film’s trailer certainly made it seem promising.

But if falls very short in execution. My primary problem was not with the paradoxical nature of the intersecting timelines; I love Star Trek and can buy off on that. It’s the fact there was never any explanation of how the three are connected. Is the 16th-century conquistador Jackman the same as the present-day scientist Jackman? If so, how are they related to the Jackman in the floating bubble in space? Flashbacks, time travel, and poorly-explained situations abound, so I’m not sure if there’s something deeper I missed or whether the script just sucked.

It’s not all bad, though. Visually, the movie’s pretty excellent. Oh, and if you like to see Hugh Jackman cry, this one is for you.

Update – This post was getting numerous comment spam, so I’ve disabled comments on this post.

2 comments

  1. ebeth
    August 20, 2007

    OH MY GOSH………HOW COULD YOU NOT LIKE THIS MOVIE??????

    I think you need to see it again, after finding out more about it.

    This movie was so freaking amazing, the special effects are all REAL….soap bubbles, samples in petri dishes. Yes they used computers to fuse them together, but they are all organic……THAT is enough of a reason to love this movie, because it was beautiful.

    And as far as the storyline, yes it is a bit hard to grap. It isnt spoonfed to you, but the conquistador storyline is very easy to understand with the scientist storyline. And after some quick googling the space theme fits in nicely.

    Im suspecting you watched this movie with someone who also didnt like it. Watch it again Scott, I thought for SURE you would like this. I havent had Sean watch it cause Im really not sure he would like it. But you I thought would totally dig a ‘thinking’ movie.

  2. bradleyjpaul
    September 17, 2007

    I dug this movie, too. I’ll admit, there are some frays around the edges, but there was a central theme and message that I found very powerful. I’ll also admit that I’m easily swept up into high-art/high-concept films, regardless of whether I truly “get” them; I’m just impressed by execution. But, this film really delved into themes on death and dying that fascinated me. I’m always intrigued by that topic, and this film left me satisfied and moved.