The Fountain vs. Tree of Life

[MCT]

Wolverine eating tree bark in outer space vs baby CGI dinosaurs for no reason

we all lose.

[Galactus]

Originally Posted by FestinaLente

I loved Tree of Life. Great to enjoy with a nice wine too. (Probably assisted in my interpretation of the film ) I'll definitely check out The Fountain now.

As for Cloud Atlas, the book is fantastic for all you readers out there. Can't wait to see the film.

Well aren't you fancy

[Snicket]

Originally Posted by MCT

Wolverine eating tree bark in outer space vs baby CGI dinosaurs for no reason

we all lose.

Actually it's just you who loses.

[amoergosum]

The Fountain.
A masterpiece.

[sukraj]

The Fountain

[Barbossa]

I'd say that they are both very different movies, but for my money I think that The Fountain is simply wonderful, while Tree of Life is a real yawn.

But hey, that's just my opinion.

[Bluyoda]

I wouldn't compare those two movies with one another.

I couldn't even finish The Fountain. I think I tried twice, but the first time it was very late at night, and I was dead tired, the second time I don't even remember, but it didn't do much for me.
Perhaps, I should check it out someday.

The Tree of Life is probably the best film ever made. I love it!

The only thing it lacks compared to Star Wars is the huge entertainment factor.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by MCT

Wolverine eating tree bark in outer space vs baby CGI dinosaurs for no reason

we all lose.

C'mon man....it was magic tree bark.

[assydingo]

The Fountain might be the best movie ever made.

Tree Of Life is a rarely incredible film that I immediately loved.

[surfdude12]

Both are in my top 10 all-time.

Yes, they are somewhat similar. Both films involve

[Show spoiler]accepting misfortune (death of loved ones), letting go of things you can't control and ultimately finding peace and serenity in the present through warm thoughts/feelings of our passed loved ones

[42041]

ToL is in my top 3 favorite movies of the past decade. I've never seen The Fountain. Sounds like I should check it out.

[Fellini912]

Originally Posted by Bluyoda

I wouldn't compare those two movies with one another.

I couldn't even finish The Fountain. I think I tried twice, but the first time it was very late at night, and I was dead tired, the second time I don't even remember, but it didn't do much for me.
Perhaps, I should check it out someday.

The Tree of Life is probably the best film ever made. I love it!

The only thing it lacks compared to Star Wars is the huge entertainment factor.

I had the same experience.

Aronofsky's films tend to have a superficial surrealism, meaning that he uses abstract imagery to give a false sense of depth. He showed so much promise in Pi, a coherent story with an underlying mystery, without the pseudo-intellectual surrealism. Black Swan and The Fountain were mediocre at best. If someone wants to experience a true surreal film watch any film by Bunuel (Un Chien Andalou) or Jodorowsky (El Topo).

I believe that Malick is the Tolstoy of film. His late films are equivalent to Hadji Murad by Tolstoy. The viewer gets to experience multiple perceptives from different characters in his films: their thoughts, goals and inspirations. The father has a different outlook towards life than the mother and child. You can see the same structure in The Thin Red Line, the general's view compared to the soldier's view. Also the cinematography is superior than the one in The Fountain.

There is really no comparison between these two films.

[Rizor]

I agree with others that The Fountain and Tree of Life are not really similar. Perhaps in their use of images to represent the cosmos. The Fountain does feature the Tree of life (which is not present in Tree of Life!).

As mentioned, The Fountain and Cloud Atlas share more in common with one another thematically.

All three have amazing trailers. The Fountain has a pretty epic trailer, but I found myself disappointed with the movie itself. It felt too small for my liking. Its narrative structure and storylines seem to be wrapped up too neatly and tidily. Nothing really wrong with that, but it just didn't quite meet my expectations from the trailer.

Cloud Atlas came along and it looked to be all I wanted from The Fountain. It's much grander in scope, but ultimately it never quite came together in my opinion. The individual stories are often farfetched and silly. Still, an interesting experience.

I quite like Tree of Life and it's my favorite of the three, but it may be harder film to connect with for audiences. The images are hauntingly beautiful and I found its portrayal of love and loss to be very moving.

Here are their trailers, 3 of my all time favorites:

[Show spoiler]

The Fountain - Official® Trailer [HD] - YouTube

Cloud Atlas - Official® Trailer 1 [HD] - YouTube

THE TREE OF LIFE Official HD Trailer - YouTube

[Snicket]

Originally Posted by Rizor

I agree with others that The Fountain and Tree of Life are not really similar. Perhaps in their use of images to represent the cosmos. The Fountain does feature the Tree of life (which is not present in Tree of Life!).

Literally no, but the Tree in TOL is more figurative, but it's still a tree.

[Rizor]

That's what I meant. The Fountain features the actual Tree of Life.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by Fellini912

I had the same experience.

Aronofsky's films tend to have a superficial surrealism, meaning that he uses abstract imagery to give a false sense of depth. He showed so much promise in Pi, a coherent story with an underlying mystery, without the pseudo-intellectual surrealism. Black Swan and The Fountain were mediocre at best. If someone wants to experience a true surreal film watch any film by Bunuel (Un Chien Andalou) or Jodorowsky (El Topo).

I believe that Malick is the Tolstoy of film. His late films are equivalent to Hadji Murad by Tolstoy. The viewer gets to experience multiple perceptives from different characters in his films: their thoughts, goals and inspirations. The father has a different outlook towards life than the mother and child. You can see the same structure in The Thin Red Line, the general's view compared to the soldier's view. Also the cinematography is superior than the one in The Fountain.

There is really no comparison between these two films.

Please define pseudo-intellectual surrealism.

[dallywhitty]

I didn't like The Fountain very much. The visuals were generally good and I remember appreciating the score, but I also remember thinking the film tried way too hard.

[SquidPuppet]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

Both are in my top 10 all-time.

Yes, they are somewhat similar. Both films involve

[Show spoiler]accepting misfortune (death of loved ones), letting go of things you can't control and ultimately finding peace and serenity in the present through warm thoughts/feelings of our passed loved ones

The Fountain is in your top ten? Not in the other thread it aint.

[Riddler The Slag]

The Fountain is comparable to Aronofsky's "Seventh Symphony".

[Shanderson88]

This is an interesting thread. I came to it because I have been intrigued to watch The Fountain for quite some time now, but it has been one of those titles that I just never seem to turn on. I see it or think of it, tell myself I have to watch it, but just have not.

When I saw "The Fountain vs. Tree of Life", I thought to myself oooooh boy, perhaps I made the right decision not turning it on after all. Don't get me wrong, I can appreciate TOL for it's beauty and the work behind it. I won't sit here and call it "awful" or "terrible" because that would be BS. I have seen way too many awful or terrible movies to not be able to tell the difference between those and films that just simply don't connect with me. I don't connect with TOL, I watched it once and I will likely never give it another shot.

However, now I am seeing mentions of The Fountain being more like Cloud Atlas, which I absolutely loved. Cloud Atlas worked wonders for me, I sat in that IMAX theater and was swept away by it. Even the parts that didn't fully work, the few scenes that felt a little cheesy or over the top, I didn't mind so much because I was so appreciative of the scope and ambition of the film.

Based off of this, is it safe to say I should give The Fountain a view?