I absolutely loved “I’m Thinking of Ending Things” when I wasn’t hating it.
It’s way too long. I could have watched more.
It made no sense. It explains everything.
Getting the idea? I’m not sure I did.
I did enjoy trying.
Is it good? That kind of description doesn’t really apply to the 2 hours and 14 minutes of the movie that wander all over the place, inside the mind and out. But I can say without hesitation that if you’re looking for something ambitious and difficult and super weird — and satisfying, in the end, though think of that in loose terms — I recommend the rather amazing experience.
'Ending Things' is the perfect Charlie Kaufman vehicle
Based on Iain Reid’s 2016 novel, the film is the perfect vehicle for Charlie Kaufman to direct (Kaufman also wrote the screenplay). Kaufman won an Oscar for the screenplay for “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” and his 2008 film “Synecdoche, New York” may be my favorite film I’ve ever reviewed, despite being incredibly challenging for the audience.
“Ending Things” is similarly strange, in spirit if not the story. The premise is simple enough: Ayoung woman, who isn’t listed in the credits as having a name, which is probably for the best because she’s called many during the course of the film, is traveling with her boyfriend of six or seven weeks to meet his parents at the farm where he grew up.
But as we learn from the start, she’s thinking of ending things. That thought colors everything that follows.
How reality and time become elastic— or not
She’s playedby Jessie Buckley, and she expertlynavigating a dizzying array of emotions and realitiesin an absurdly difficult role. Jesse Plemons, also outstanding, plays Jake, the boyfriend; it's a measured performance that builds in intensity and then ... well. You'll see. It’s a long drive through increasingly snowy weather. Kaufman, for a long stretch, simply leaves the camera watching the couple as they talk — and as she thinks. Can Jake read her thoughts? He seems to be able to at times. Whatever the case, the bleak landscape, the howling wind and the awkward conversation (sometimes about physics, sometimes about musical theater, sometimes about the snow; at one point she recites her most recent poem from memory) make it an uncomfortable trip, especially for her — and us.
He calls her Lucy, and notes that Wordsworth wrote poems about a Lucy. She gets a call from “Lucy,” but doesn’t answer.
Juxtaposed with the trip are shots of a man (Guy Boyd) preparing for his job as a high school janitor, where we will see him off and on and then on again for the rest of the film.
When they finally arrive at the farm, Jake’s mother (Toni Collette) is waving from a window, but despite what’s now a blizzard, he’s not ready to go in yet. Instead, he takes Lucy on a tour of the farm, with some rather grisly animal stories to relate.
When they finally get inside the house, reality becomes more custom than law. Jake’s mother dotes on him excessively, laughs far too loud and seems on edge. Jake’s father (David Thewlis), learning that Lucy (for now) is an artist (when she’s not a physics student or a poet, or maybe she’s an artist and a poet studying physics), rails against abstract art. And what kind of art does Lucy make?
Guess.
Why there's no way to not care about thismovie, even if you hate it
Characters age and get younger. Horror tropes, like a potential secret in the basement, come and go. Is the framed picture of a child Jake or Lucy, or whoever she is now? The house is a funhouse of the mind, and a nightmare. Lucy nags Jake to leave before they’re stranded in the snow. He wants to stop at a 24-hour ice cream shop, a surreal diversion.
Then, a side trip to Jake’s high school. Spoiling what happens next would be both cruel and, frankly, impossible. At some point, you just have to sit back and let it all wash over you. Watch and try to figure it out later. Good for Kaufman for demanding the attention and the effort of the audience.
Be warned — some people will hate the film. Which is fine. That’s better than not caring, which, with “I’ve Been Thinking of Ending Things” is impossible.
'I'm Thinking of Ending Things' 4.5 stars
Great ★★★★★ Good ★★★★
Fair ★★★ Bad ★★Bomb★
Director: Charlie Kaufman
Cast:Jessie Buckley, Jesse Plemons, Toni Collette.
Rating:R for language including some sexual references.
Note: Streams on Netflix on Friday, Sept. 4.
Reach Goodykoontz at bill.goodykoontz@arizonarepublic.com. Facebook: facebook.com/GoodyOnFilm. Twitter: @goodyk.
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