My second time watching the movie I picked up a lot more than I did the first time. The ending in particular seemed more tragic the second time through because I noticed that John may have been able to save Elena. Maybe not from the apocalypse, but from her disease of the heart. I might be seeing hints where none exist, however if you pay close attention to the acting and narrative in the film you may notice what I am talking about.
Just another warning, this part contains huge spoilers. Read this after you see the movie!
Evidence that John could have saved Elena:
-When John first meets the clones, the one with the knife screams "You killed her!" This line caught my attention, since it could be foreshadowing that he does kill her later in the film.
-After Michael leaves he dies very quickly in an extremely heavy blizzard. It is clear that what he really dies from is his heart problem. He is cut off from everyone he loves. Elena and John have abandoned him, he is rejected by the rest of his family, and he is feeling a horrible sense of guilt for his betrayal. After he dies we cut to a scene of Elena and John who are dancing on the ice. They are both happy, the scene is serene, and the weather is almost perfectly calm. The question then is, why didn't Elena and John both perish in the same storm that Michael died in? The reason may be that the storm and cold are somewhat subjective. In other words the storm may vary from person to person depending upon the condition of their heart. It may even be that those dead on the street experienced the storm and cold, while others around them were unaffected.
-When they are dancing on the lake, notice that Elena is perfectly happy and energetic one moment, but as soon as John lets go of her she looks completely tired and exhausted (great acting by Claire!). She then kind of lags behind John all the time that they are walking. They start to become separated and as a result Elena's heart gets worse. This scene, if I am correct, is a sort of microcosm of the movie itself. They would have been perfectly happy if they would have just stayed there dancing and experiencing love for one another, but instead John decides that they need to start going somewhere. It is the embodiment of what Marciello says: "We should have just stayed by the lake in Poland".
-We are at the scene were Elena is Dying. We think that she has died, but then John cries over her and finally kisses her forehead. She immediately wakes up and says "What is happening, John". It was heartbreaking to realize, but it seemed that her surprise was from her heart getting better! She is at the brink of death and the kiss on the forehead brings her back for a moment. John however does not realize this, and tries to comfort her. He props his head up and the connection between them is gone. When he resumes crying over her again she is already dead.
Conclusion: Once you put together all these subtle hints you have a very interesting and very tragic ending. John might have been able to save her, but instead he weakened her heart by sending Michael away and continuing to travel when he should have been giving her love and affection. Even a simple kiss at the last moment might have revitalized her.
Even if they were going to die no matter what, they would have been much better off spending their last few hours alive with each other, rather walking to nowhere.
I see their trek through the winter forest as a metaphor for life. We embark upon our own journeys to find such things as fame, wealth, or status. We may get lost on the way or find that once we get there it is not important. We waste so much time trying to get to these places, but yet the time would be so much better spent with those we love.
Maybe I am right about John killing Elena, maybe I am not. Watch the movie again and judge for yourself.
If this movie completely confuses you, remember that it is not a movie that should be taken literally. It is a dream, and dreams tend to present information in a fragmented and cryptic manner. You may be confused simply because you do not have the right experiences or knowledge in life to interpret this dream. This is a brilliant movie, but to recognize it as thus you need to appreciate beauty, understand metaphor, recognize subtlety, and use whatever intelligence you have. In case you cannot do that though, ill just tell you right now that it's all about love.
Just another warning, this part contains huge spoilers. Read this after you see the movie!
Evidence that John could have saved Elena:
-When John first meets the clones, the one with the knife screams "You killed her!" This line caught my attention, since it could be foreshadowing that he does kill her later in the film.
- Marciello (Sean Penn) says on the plane something along the lines of "John, you can save her. Kiss her John." Could this be hinting that kissing her would cure or ameliorate her heart problems? -Relating to the previous comment, notice that through their whole trek through the winter forest not once do they kiss.
-After Michael leaves he dies very quickly in an extremely heavy blizzard. It is clear that what he really dies from is his heart problem. He is cut off from everyone he loves. Elena and John have abandoned him, he is rejected by the rest of his family, and he is feeling a horrible sense of guilt for his betrayal. After he dies we cut to a scene of Elena and John who are dancing on the ice. They are both happy, the scene is serene, and the weather is almost perfectly calm. The question then is, why didn't Elena and John both perish in the same storm that Michael died in? The reason may be that the storm and cold are somewhat subjective. In other words the storm may vary from person to person depending upon the condition of their heart. It may even be that those dead on the street experienced the storm and cold, while others around them were unaffected.
-When they are dancing on the lake, notice that Elena is perfectly happy and energetic one moment, but as soon as John lets go of her she looks completely tired and exhausted (great acting by Claire!). She then kind of lags behind John all the time that they are walking. They start to become separated and as a result Elena's heart gets worse. This scene, if I am correct, is a sort of microcosm of the movie itself. They would have been perfectly happy if they would have just stayed there dancing and experiencing love for one another, but instead John decides that they need to start going somewhere. It is the embodiment of what Marciello says: "We should have just stayed by the lake in Poland".
-We are at the scene were Elena is Dying. We think that she has died, but then John cries over her and finally kisses her forehead. She immediately wakes up and says "What is happening, John". It was heartbreaking to realize, but it seemed that her surprise was from her heart getting better! She is at the brink of death and the kiss on the forehead brings her back for a moment. John however does not realize this, and tries to comfort her. He props his head up and the connection between them is gone. When he resumes crying over her again she is already dead.
Conclusion: Once you put together all these subtle hints you have a very interesting and very tragic ending. John might have been able to save her, but instead he weakened her heart by sending Michael away and continuing to travel when he should have been giving her love and affection. Even a simple kiss at the last moment might have revitalized her.
Even if they were going to die no matter what, they would have been much better off spending their last few hours alive with each other, rather walking to nowhere.
I see their trek through the winter forest as a metaphor for life. We embark upon our own journeys to find such things as fame, wealth, or status. We may get lost on the way or find that once we get there it is not important. We waste so much time trying to get to these places, but yet the time would be so much better spent with those we love.
Maybe I am right about John killing Elena, maybe I am not. Watch the movie again and judge for yourself.
If this movie completely confuses you, remember that it is not a movie that should be taken literally. It is a dream, and dreams tend to present information in a fragmented and cryptic manner. You may be confused simply because you do not have the right experiences or knowledge in life to interpret this dream. This is a brilliant movie, but to recognize it as thus you need to appreciate beauty, understand metaphor, recognize subtlety, and use whatever intelligence you have. In case you cannot do that though, ill just tell you right now that it's all about love.