7) The Fountain
Darren Aronofsky has become something of a mainstream indie star director following the massive consecutive successes of The Wrestler and Black Swan, the latter of which contains plenty of surrealistic moments that had people scratching their heads when they weren’t busy pissing themselves in fear. But in 2006 he made a film that was another cinematic attempt to tie in all of human history to make some sort of grand statement about humanity and life and the universe (this seems to be a trend in the WTF genre).
The Fountain is perhaps one of the most gorgeous looking movies ever made, mixing rich visual effects with dazzling colors and this all wonderfully complements a love story centering itself on the realization that all love stories end, most often in death. It goes to great lengths to demonstrate the inescapability of this universal truth.
For many people I’ve talked to, it’s a severely mindblowing and unintelligible film, leaving mostly the impression of bewilderment and dismissal. I find it to contain so much emotional punch and poetic truth, the kind that it’s such an immense challenge to put into words, that it’s one of those essential movies I wish more people would see and appreciate. Especially people who dug Black Swan for more than just the lezzing out.
