Read Mixed User Reviews for i'm thinking of ending things

5

JLuis_001Sep 7, 2020

I’m Thinking of Ending Things it’s quite a trip. I expected no less from Kaufman, but what lies behind the facade is too vague. And when you wander down that path if there’s no heart behind the intellectual pomposity, you will hardly give theI’m Thinking of Ending Things it’s quite a trip. I expected no less from Kaufman, but what lies behind the facade is too vague. And when you wander down that path if there’s no heart behind the intellectual pomposity, you will hardly give the viewer good reasons to remain interested beyond the fact of assuming that it’s a "deep" film and the weak couldn’t understand it.
Honestly, I'm already preparing for the wave of opinions that I will see about that online.

I’m Thinking of Ending Things feeds on being weird but unfortunately for its development it doesn't seem to be interested in that weirdness being something worth mentioning, rather that is simply the presentation layer. It's an idea that doesn't seem to make sense, especially since this is reflected in the characters and you understand it when after certain events you realize that there is no central character. The idea and its conceptualization are those who take center stage but that only makes sense when you realize the characters presented aren't going anywhere.
Sounds weird? Trust me it's weirder.

From the beginning when we have the perspective of the character of Jessie Buckley, you realize that something is wrong.
She's meeting her boyfriend's parents for the first time but while inside the car with him, we can see he's barely interested in responding to her. We arrive at the parent’s house but there, the story stagnates and even when the film invites surrealism, it's evident that there's a big disconnection between what is seen on screen and what I assume is being explored in its philosophical allegories.

In that house we meet the parents of Jesse Plemons' character and they are played by Toni Collette and David Thewlis, but both characters are shown so exaggerated and clumsy that at no time they seem like real people.
Although it's evident that it's about putting a discordant atmosphere in that home in which a good piece of the plot takes place, one also cannot help asking what the true purpose of that was.
And it's that what follows is quite bizarre. The characters turn into others, several times, this because time seems to go back and forth and you ask yourself many things at that moment and not so much because you want to know what is happening, but because it's inevitable to question whether there will be a payoff to all that stuff. Unfortunately as you keep going you realize that it doesn't really matter and is there where the key and monumental flaw of this film lies.

If at all times you're wondering what is real and what is not, I could say the matter could be more interesting if finding the meaning was significant and then you would ask yourself was it worth it?
But ultimately and with 134 long minutes that question echoes over and over again and my response is: ''It wasn't''… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

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6

Brass_sassSep 5, 2020

Honestly i enjoyed the movie its Charlie Kaufman doing what he does which is good, just the movie lacked a good driving force in the movie as a opposed to the book which had me compelled al the way through, yet the mov8e looks great and itHonestly i enjoyed the movie its Charlie Kaufman doing what he does which is good, just the movie lacked a good driving force in the movie as a opposed to the book which had me compelled al the way through, yet the mov8e looks great and it portray what the book was going for but. Differently, this film is more of a abstract rather than a thriller like the book… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

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4

snorkissSep 13, 2020

I'm thinking of ending things after watching I'm Thinking of Ending Things. Great performances and interesting concepts are wasted on this bloated, self-indulgent mess - 4 stars

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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4

tibzoidSep 4, 2020

The title is what you’ll be saying to yourself throughout. Oh the boredom of this.

3 of 16 users found this helpful313

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5

FadeBlackJan 27, 2021

There were some interesting quotes and themes mentioned in the movie, but the surrealistic approach to examining them didn't do much for me. Life is confusing and is a mixture of contradicting feelings and emotions...feels like the message ofThere were some interesting quotes and themes mentioned in the movie, but the surrealistic approach to examining them didn't do much for me. Life is confusing and is a mixture of contradicting feelings and emotions...feels like the message of most surrealistic films, and this one is no different. A movie that could have been going somewhere interesting but lost its way, at least in my view.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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6

EldorethSep 12, 2020

After watching this film, I was rather confused and wanted to solve the mystery. But there weren't enough numbers in the Sudoko puzzle to make much sense of it. I went online and someone there had posted something that made sense of the filmAfter watching this film, I was rather confused and wanted to solve the mystery. But there weren't enough numbers in the Sudoko puzzle to make much sense of it. I went online and someone there had posted something that made sense of the film and it clicked. As I've grown I've found myself less and less enthused about vagueness and abstraction. I've started to prefer straightfowardness and truthful approximation. I just think if you have something to say, then say it, damnit. The movie would have hit a lot harder had I know what exactly it was trying to say rather than trying to be "smart" and mysterious.

This movie needed a sympathetic protagonist. It needed to be his voice we heard first, so that we would know he is the central character. By the end we would need to know what is happening and we would empathize with the central character which would produce a cathartic response. We got this in Eternal Sunshine. We could have gotten this in this film too.

I also wonder why the film kept cutting away from Plemmons at the last scene, even cutting away strangely in the middle of a climax in the scene, forcing us to look from afar rather than see the emotion on his face. This repeated cutting close and far was stupid. No other explanation. It was jarring and stupid.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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4

NoblerevSep 8, 2020

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. A head scratcher for sure, but too abstract to retain the interest of the average viewer, I powered through it and felt like I'd wasted my time.
I get that it's supposed to be a film you interpretate but it was so disjointed that it just felt lazy rather than like a cinematic masterpiece.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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6

siggi104Jul 8, 2022

No idea what I've watched but I don't really care. All I felt after watching this movie was damn another -2 hours of my life time. Putting random things together trying to be artsy or deep doesn't make a movie good.

After watching EternalNo idea what I've watched but I don't really care. All I felt after watching this movie was damn another -2 hours of my life time. Putting random things together trying to be artsy or deep doesn't make a movie good.

After watching Eternal Sunshine and knowing it's by the same guy it makes more sense. A movie has to be understood and work in a vacuum without prior knowledge like that. Which this movie doesn't do at all. This is definitely Kaufmann trying to hit a higher level than Eternal Sunshine in every way but imo he missed the mark. Missed potential!… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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4

moviemitch96Sep 6, 2020

An absolutely bizarre, aimless, and pointless film that I can't even begin to try and sum up. Between this and 'Anomalisa', I've officially decided that Charlie Kaufman should stick to JUST writing scripts, cause his sense of direction isAn absolutely bizarre, aimless, and pointless film that I can't even begin to try and sum up. Between this and 'Anomalisa', I've officially decided that Charlie Kaufman should stick to JUST writing scripts, cause his sense of direction is akin to that of a poker player completely unsure of what his next move will be. This is me calling his bluff.… Expand