I'm Thinking of Ending Things Movie Review

photo courtesy of IMDb (2020)

Charlie Kaufman is back in the director's chair for the first time in four years since his Oscar nominated stop-motion animated masterpiece Anomalisa (2016). This one is back in live action and it was exactly the level of quality that I was expecting. It released through Netflix on September 4th.

Kaufman is one of my favorite people working in film today, and he's directed some of my favorite movies of all time. He was the screenwriter for the breakout hits Being John Malkovich (1999), Adaptation (2002), and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), but became a full time writer/director for my favorite film of all time, Synecdoche, New York (2008). His track record is impeccable so I had high hopes for his newest work. He cast Jesse Plemons, who you may recognize from his excellent work on Breaking Bad, and Jessie Buckley as his two leads.

I'm Thinking of Ending Things is based off of Ian Reid's 2016 novel by the same name. I was psyched to hear that Kaufman would be undertaking the film adaptation because the book is so right up my alley. It's a surrealist horror story that involves a female narrator going on a trip with her boyfriend to meet his parents. She is grappling with "ending things" and it all starts to go downhill and get fever-dreamish from there. The movie basically hits the beats that the original does, but without saying too much, Kaufman does still put his own spin on it. I won't knock any changes, though. A piece of art can be changed only slightly to completely alter it's meaning (not that this is doing that). We learned this from the whole Kubrick and Stephen King drama with The Shining. Anyways, is the movie better? Eh, I don't know yet. They're different but also the same, which is a theme that is really prevalent in these so maybe this is just the meta-ness of it all.

Comparisons aside, the acting is great, the score brings you in, the writing is obviously amazing, and the visuals are all interesting as well as eye-catching. Every moment and piece of dialogue is purposeful and ties in with something else, and it feels like the level of finite detail that you'd find in any other Kaufman piece of work. There isn't a lot to hate on here. The dinner table scene is fantastic and you'll know what I'm talking about when you see it. It's creatively fresh when it comes to genre. I feel like the film emphasizes that it's a thriller first, so there are plenty of unsettling and strange sequences that work great. When you engage with this film, it can psychologically wrap you in to get even more of an effect on you. Now, it should not go without saying that this movie contains some genuinely funny moments. Part of that is due to some extreme awkwardness and uncomfortably as a viewer, but another part comes from references, artistic nods, and recurring bits.

Let's go over my gripes, which are pretty minimal. At times, I felt like the dialogue/narration was a bit too philosophically heady. However, I want to say that the inclusion of that is kind of the point during these scenes since 1. These characters are just those types of people, and 2. Some of these are road-trip conversations, which is a typical space for that. *This can also be better explained by the ending. So, yes, some of it feels purposeful, but there were a few other moments that lacked the subtlety to let other elements speak for themselves. I don't count this as a spoiler, but, there's this scene in Act I where Jake is telling Lucy about a gruesome way a pig died on his farm, and instead of letting that speak for itself in the context of the movie, the narrator starts to pontificate on death and existence and such. Look, I'm fine with overt existentialism in movies, and that's sort of what Kaufman is all about anyways, but some people don't like it at all. I can imagine some might find the characters as an indication that the writer is pretentious or something, but I just ask for subtlety when it comes to the coverage of those things.

That being said, it's self-explanatory that this film is not for everybody. It's more of a grower than a show-er. I wouldn't stand up on a soapbox in town-square with a Blu-ray copy in hand and demand everyone go see it, but I would say that it pays off if you're willing to commit to viewing it and thinking about it. It can lead to some engaging conversations and personal thinking sessions, so if you're going into this with an open mind, I'd definitely say to go for it and hit the play button. Charlie Kaufman movies always have a moment where he takes it 1000 miles an hour and it's so disorienting that it feels like you're being jettisoned out of a plane ride halfway through, so be prepared to eventually lose all understanding of what you might know and just accept your confusion. Part of the fun of his movies is trying to piece everything together while the credits are rolling, and most of the time, you'll come up with some cool theories about what you just saw. These lead to the BEST conversations with others.

I'm a little worried that the film will get negative reception from mainstream audiences. Certain demographics will see the little preview trailer thing that Netflix gives and expect some run- of-the-mill teenage horror flick like The Visit or something but end up being bored and confused. There are themes/messages in this film that people won't know to look for and that scares me because this is a piece of art that's trying to say something and it deserves critical appraise for how hard it works to build meaning.

I'm thinking that I'll rate this a 9/10* with a real possibility that it could rise higher with more time and viewing. You may see an edit from me here at some point, and I'll be sure to star it if I change my mind!

*Edit as of 11/21: this is easily a 10/10 film. The amount of crazy detail to uncover and layers to pull back through multiple viewings of this are insurmountable. It's so worthy of a thorough analysis and fits right in with the other awesome Kaufman movies.

Note: I'm still working away at articles for The Bullpen, but just saw this movie and wanted to share my initial thoughts. Apologies in advance since posts on here will continue to be sporadic!

Discussing how the Pandemic affects the future of OCD

Artwork by Miroslava Chrienova

When the nation started really taking the whole COVID-19 thing seriously, it was the most surreal thing for me to witness, especially as someone who is already so highly conscious of how I interact with the outside world. I kept telling others that it was suddenly sort of like everyone else also had OCD now. Before, the average American would see me meticulously wiping down the handle of my shopping cart and probably raise an eyebrow. I remember wearing a mask to work a couple of times because I was feeling extra anxious during a particularly heavy flu season and everyone there thought I had Ebola or Smallpox or something. Now, you're literally not allowed to enter that very same store and many more like it without wearing face protection. When you even see people disinfecting their disinfectant, it's safe to assume society has flipped over in these last several months. I for one, am happy to see a majority of the public acting more cautious and taking extra safety measures. I hope it stays like that because it makes me feel a lot safer. But, as much as I just want to look at the silver linings, there are plenty of concerns I have about the future.

My particular category of OCD deals with a "fear of food" if you want to put it that way. But, it's still classified under the "Contamination OCD" strain. Germs or anything that can affect my health is still very much in play for me. My story with managing this constant torture through medication has been a rocky one, but before the new year began, I finally settled on one that kept my intrusive thoughts down to a minimum. It was a blessing to be honest. I was functioning almost perfectly fine until the sh*t hit the fan. Everyone was panic buying, making rash decisions, and just straight up acting like the apocalypse was upon us. It was frustrating because I finally felt like I could be a normal member of my social environment that DID NOT panic every second over everything. But suddenly, I was the copacetic one and everyone around me was panicking. I fought as hard as I could for awhile to not buy into the fear, but it's been everywhere. I was living in internal fear for the longest, but now I was living in external fear. You'd think I'd have it figured out, but I was already susceptible to all of it with my disorder just recently being only somewhat reined in.

2020 has been difficult to say the least, but I can find solace in the fact that I've had plenty of practice over the years. We had plenty of Clorox wipes and Dial hand soap already, which helped us last a little longer through the stock shortage. I'm no stranger to being overly prepared. When someone comes to me with a newly harbored anxiety about the pandemic, I can't help but think "welcome to hell dude, I've built a nice home here." But, that's clearly not the right thing to do. I want to be there for them, because I understand a lot of it. People are exhausted from paying so much attention, and I sure as heck know the feeling, especially when there's no break in sight.

After all of this, I still can't help but wonder what this means the future of OCD and its community. Will the societal preconception of OCD finally start to change from being nice, neat, and orderly? Probably not. But, once the pandemic passes, how many will develop the condition as a result of the trauma they experienced and emotional weight they placed on themselves? Definitely some. Others will jokingly say they have it, or at least, used to have it until it miraculously went away because that's totally how it works. I truly feel for people who already have been diagnosed and been through the wringer a few times. Which leads me to ask: How many people that ALREADY have OCD will pick up further obsessive compulsive behavior as a result of such high levels of fear? How many will spiral further down into even more unhealthy practices? Reading some of the forums dedicated to the disorder that I frequent, I've seen plenty of people getting worse by the day and succumbing to the panic that they already try so hard to fight on the daily. It's upsetting and depressing to witness.

I can't stress enough how uplifting it is to see OCD communities come together during these tough times and be there for one another. Keep in mind that many types of OCD apart from contamination and washing will be impacted outside of this, and we can't forget about them, too. Even if the chaos outside doesn't affect someone, the isolation and extra time alone with their thoughts can. That really goes for all forms of mental health. As for family members and friends, be there for your affected loved ones and ask what you can do to help. Be transparent and honest with one another about your feelings. Or, at the very least, educate yourself about the disorder and don't do anything stupid out in public. And, for f*cks sake, please don't self-diagnose. Go see a doctor if you feel you are developing irrational thoughts and are truly suffering from what your own brain does to you. It's extremely belittling to someone who actually has Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. It's one thing to be particular, but it's another to let it irrationally consume you to the point that it takes over your life.

A return to "normal life," so to speak will likely come with enough time. At least maybe now, wearing a mask in public, wiping down a shopping cart, applying excessive hand sanitizer, and any other health conscious behavior won't be looked upon as being too weird or abnormal. Society could use a little less judgement anyways. Who knows? Maybe some of these precautionary practices being implemented in settings across the world will stick around. You might have even heard about this being the "death of the handshake," which could also be a nice change. Maybe those cool bathroom doors with the handle you can open with just your foot that help prevent the spread of door knobs will become more prevalent. I'm being overly optimistic here, but hopefully the pandemic will at least function as a teaching moment in open-mindedness, awareness, and how millions perceive one another. These will all come as benefits to people who suffer from illnesses like Obsessive Compulsive Disorder by possibly giving them one less thing to dread. I know, I know. Call me idealistic. I'm sorry. What can I say? I'm off that Serotonin. The pandemic brings both good and bad things to mental health as a whole. At least we can all agree that for better or for worse, the public will never look at health the same.