@@PhaggyJames you need to get your head out of your ass. Some people can’t break things down and confusing ass movies and others are really good at explaining it. It’s been like that forever and there’s nothing wrong with it.
So much of this feels like a metaphor of how anxiety disorders feel like to a person, and how it makes negative experiences go from 'I made a mistake' to 'I am the worst person ever'. With anxiety disorders, you always think pf the worst case scenerio, even if it is completely ridiculous. Couple this with a mother who is suffering from her own disorders. We don't know the full picture of his mother, but we know the parts he's had to deal with: perfectionist, controlling, narcissistic. It's a portrait of a person with a severe anxiety disorder going through a mental breakdown, with an increasingly surreal world where everything you try to attach to for love/stability capsizes, or comes at a cost.
I have several anxiety disorders and you're exactly right. To people without anxiety it might seem overdramatic but that's literally what it feels like.
@@mumenRhyder im starting college again tomorrow (same college ive been at for a year) and ive had 3 anxiety attacks and I couldnt get an hour of sleep, OVER NOTHING. Anxiety is the worst shit ever
As someone who has severe anxiety that’s resulted in agoraphobia, this movie feels so real for the dumb stupid fears I deal with, the worst case scenarios and such
As someone who has severe anxiety (struggle to even speak to immediately family without drugs) idk wtf you mean this movie made no fucking sense anxiety is nothing like this. this was like taking every drug in the world at the same fucking time and trying to find meaning in the fucking mudpile you just turned your brain into...
Autism and in turn agoraphobia truly has obliterated my life, there's no work in the quiet places like the countryside and the cities just keep expanding. Horrible
When I was homeless and was sleeping in my secret base(it was a attic type thing in a business building) and I woke to two electricians working on the electric box there. I said good morning and I'll get going. But then they said they are almost done and to stay and get more sleep. Maybe someday I'll write my memoirs
@@misuvittupaa8068 take your time. Consider how you'd like the piece of literature and how it will be structured. Do you tell your stories from your perspective now? Or then? Chronology? What is the message? Just trying to give you some thinking food m8
@@CarlTheSpud thanks for tips. But making those kind of things were next on my list. Only thing I've decided that I will be the narrator+point of character. I probably need to find some site where I can get help when I run in problems:)
For me, there is a lot of implication that Mona was SAing Beau, trying to literally morph him into the husband she lost while still attempting to keep him an innocent boy. The anxiety about sex, the one girl he had attraction to acting like his mother, and Mona constantly deflecting all his mistakes and her grievances on him all point to someone who was kept in perpetual childhood for his mother's own sick needs. When Beau started to grow and ask questions, she immediately goes into aggressive mode and pretend that she's being hurt. In reality, Beau is just growing up and Mona can't stand it. She wants to have the best of both worlds, husband and child, all at the same time. Beau also seems to hide from her a great deal, almost as if he's trying to prevent abuse from happening. Beau crying for help at the end is him begging for assistance from his mom's incessant cruelty.
See i got that same thing from it also. I was like why shed freak out from him kissing Elaine? I thought oh its bc weird stranger girl but it seemed more than that.
At the "trial" in the end, the doctor says Beau gave someone else a gift that was preserved for his mother (for a second I thought he was talking about his v). Then he refers to the ceramic figure Beau bought for his mom at the beginning, but it could be a metaphor
Reverse Oedipus complex or Munchhausen by proxy is my biggest take away here too! Felt very much in line with your theory Especially the scene with people breaking and entering his home. Felt invasive and scary!
i have bad anxiety and grew up with chronic guilt. this movie hit way too close to home. confusion, scared of the world, and feeling like the worst person in the world. i’m really glad im able to work through it, connect with the world, and realize that there’s nothing wrong with me
Amen ! There's nothing wrong with you and isolating yourself really only robs the world of everything you have to offer. You were meant to shine so don't hide yourself and don't let yourself be bullied by your own thought. Love you (so does Jesus), take care love ! ❤
I loved this movie! I really felt the anxiety and thought process behind Beau’s character! I loved how characters hint that Beau is on trial. He knows he isn’t doing anything wrong, and is desperately trying not to upset anyone around him, but still his actions are seen as transgressions against his mother further cementing why his mind works this way!
When I saw the thumbnail, I thought "Holy shit, he's actually gonna try and explain it..." Most people will not like this movie. I loved it. I also hated it. I would not watch it again, but I am glad that I did, and found it in equal parts entertaining and baffling. My take was that his mother used him as a pharmaceutical test subject when he was a child and did irreparable damage to his mind. Just as he can never tell what's real, neither can we observers.
His meds probably STILL come from Mona. Mona has an impossibly powerful monopoly after making a deal with a god of fertility, Beau's dad aka the penis monster
This movie was the most stressed I've ever been watching anything. And I'm a big horror movie fan. I had to pause it several times to catch my breath. It was so well made. I can relate to him a little too much, extreme anxiety is so difficult to live with. I both love and hate this movie- another one that hits unrelentlessly hard is I'm Thinking of Ending Things. It made me deeply uncomfortable but it was also beautiful
@@Zizi1312imagine being so soulless that you refused to believe fiction can affect others to the point of extreme stress, yknow, like the movie was supposed to????
As someone with severe anxiety, this film made sense. It does genuinely feel like the world is directly against you. The only voice of reason you have gets squashed out by the rest of the negative thoughts like it showed in the court scene. Turning situations that aren't even remotely bad into one's that feel like it was the worst experience you could have had. Always expecting the worst to happen when doing something which in turn becomes a self fulfilling prophecy. It's really rough. You aren't crazy but you're always terrified and alone and it feels like noone wants to help. You also don't have the tools to help yourself in most situations so it's just constricting.
My interpretation/theory is that Beau was actually too paranoid to be born in the first place. The entire apartment part was his perspective from the womb, where he imagined what the world is based off what his mom tells him- One day he'd be an old man, there's dead bodies in the street, tattooed people are evil, being a big crybaby over a spider, etc. His flight was his actual birthday that he missed because he couldnt lock up behind him and stayed behind, but when he broke away for water his apartment got destroyed and couldn't get back in and has to spend a night on the (abdominal) scaffolding. Once he did get back inside he remembers that someone could barge in and kill him (aborted) so he barricades himself inside and decides maybe he should leave which is when he calls his mom and a delivery person told him that his mom has "lost her head" (in reality Beaus mom is freaking out because her labor has gotten complicated while the person delivering tries to get beau to come out) and after he gets pushed outside in the nude and evades birthday suit stabby man (Dr choppy pp interpretation) he's smacked by a delivery truck (Probably the moment hes spanked) The next section he's literally saved by Grace, so Beau is probably imagining living with faith off what he's been told as well- The father performs miracles, their only son sacrificed their life, they have a recording of everything that has and will happen. The buzzer he uses to first call Grace is like an answered prayer, and the first thing Grace asks is "Did you press the button [Pray]?". The medicated (conditioned) soldiers name is Jeeves like a butler, so we can imply he does what told while Grace also mentions he doesnt know what hes doing, so he might be a representation of the unconscious followers. After Grace turns and sees Beau as a demon she grabs a sword which could symbolize waging war, because she then uses the soldier for perceived revenge. Importantly, in some faiths people are born sinners before they're purified, so this could be a root for his anxiety- that he's "guilty" before he's even done anything. There's a religious billboard outside Beaus apartment window that could symbolize both how big of a presence religion has in Beaus existence and also how he believes it's always looming overhead observing him. In the beginning of the movie, the box of trinkets that Beau chooses the figurine from could symbolize him selecting his faith (As a gift to his mom) and when the cabinet is opened the glass reflects the man who's threatening to jump off the building. Toni says that Beau has been being tested, while her friend Liz randomly appears in the forest part. They both film Beau, which could imply they're "angels with a million eyes" [if a video is worth a million views], where Toni could be an angel either testing Beau to atone or guiding his soul to the afterlife like a psychopomp, while her friend Liz could be Lucifer/Satan, the fallen angel which explains her appearance in the forest. Beau being stabbed by Birthdaysuit Stabby Man in two spots could be how Beau immediately gets his pp and umbilical cord cut, but the "puss-like" wound on his side could also be a brand, seeing how Beaus test could be to admitting he's a coward (which immediately concluded the forest). The forest could represent the absence of religion or his mom's description of satanism, which embraces freedom of will rather than vindicating it. The excluded and the lost ("Orphaned") put on the play of life creating their own stories, in which doing so Beau finds himself, until the wrath of Grace disturbs the peace. Theres a rehearsal where a man talks about blindly choosing between roads (faith) and if following one backtracks another, and another person who mentions hearing trumpets when its too late (Biblical Apocalypse). Theres a woman singing a song with the lyrics "You can give your life, you can lose your soul, you can bang your head or you can drown in a hole", which could reference Beaus choice between regretfully giving his life to faith or ending things by "drowning in a hole". After hes embraced the forest and "committed entirely" by giving the trinket to Penelope, he's smitten and zapped by electricity like a higher power striking down a heathen who has rejected faith. In the house section, the town and the company is named after Beaus mom because everything in his existence has been because of and a part of her, the W logo in the poster for the apartment can be seen as a "house" between two legs, Beaus Mom mentions 'Squeezing but getting nothing in return', and Beau encounters the only memory he'd have of seeing his dad. This section could represent something along the lines of either remembrance or control, with how what starts as a funeral dives into repressed memories, or how it seemed Beaus mother tried to oversee and manipulate Beau all his existence. The catering van outside is named after Shiva the destroyer, so maybe this is a representation of Beaus existence flashing before his eyes before death, all of which Beau shared with his mom even while she was working or medicated, and him being reunited with his loved ones in the afterlife. Since we see Elaine die by the family curse and is there when other Beau gets locked away, they could both be representations of who he could've been. The cruise could've been a representation of his mom's body carrying life like a vessel, with everyone on board an egg, which could explain the body in the pool (whos name is Gene, like a gene pool) while also impling that Elaine is actually Beaus fraternal twin seeing how they're the only children on the cruise, Beau just didnt realize they share the same mother (Also remember Elaines choice of words to describe her mother and asks if Beaus is the same). I think there's also something to be said with how Cruise Mona is a hopeful mother while Adult Mona is a scorn mother like her own mother was. There are times where she physically changes which could be showing how Mona "becomes" her own mother. This cycle of becoming your mother could explain why Elaine starts to put on Monas make-up The final part is where Beau expects to be judged as hes been told he would at the end of his life. His face before he sets sail is stuck in a gasping expression possibly exactly how his rigor mortis has set in, Beau is taken by boat towards his judgment like Charon carried those down the Styx towards the underworld. After his 1800DEFENSE lawyer is 'stoned to death', Beau realizes that he can't call for help and accepts death. IIRC my mom had taught me the lords prayer to include "Thy Kingdom Come, Thy will be done", so if Beau was interpretting religion earlier it might explain how Beau "came" to his end in the final scene. I don't think he ever actually lived, but the anxiety stemmed by his anxiously religious mother made him paranoid about being born a sinner and was too afraid to live and he accidentally caused a complicated delivery that he didn't survive and instead experienced all the fears he thought would happen described by the only person he knew If Beau didn't survive being born then that could explain why he wasn't screaming in the beginning despite being such an anxious soul. I still find more little details everytime I rewatch with this perspective too, like how his mom's number is listed as Home, or how his apartment entrance (next to the XXX store) is a pair of narrow flesh toned hallways leading straight to Beaus bare-walled room (With something special at the end of the first hallway). The therapist visit in the beginning might actually be the last check up with the baby doctor, who he imagines looks a bit like a doctor sized baby, which explains how he shared information with Beaus mom. During that visit Beau is asked how long its been since he's visited his mom and he says 'Several months', and the doctors office has an abundance of bonsai trees which might symbolize growing life that's been pruned to take a desired form, both mentally by controlling his faith and physically by getting pruned by Dr choppy pp Edit: 5:16 The name of the show with the header "Tonight at 8PM" pretty much foreshadows this entire theory and can't just be a coincidence 👀 Edit 2: the grandmother's picture looks exactly like an incantation bowl used to prevent Lilith from taking babies during or after birth. Mona also shapeshifts (watch for the color green), just like Lilith can.
As someone who has suffered from life-long anxiety, this movie hits hard. They did a great job at portraying anxiety. I kinda hope some of my family sees the movie so they understand me a bit more
This was a personal attack I was going through a crisis and kept having dreams like this for years then I finally got to a point where I was stable and feeling confident then boom the trailer drops looking way too close to my reoccurring dreams with my god damn name slapped on it taunting me the cabal be wylin out here fr
This movie was crazyyyy. You won’t ever be bored lmao. Literally a 3 hour panic attack lol. Will never watch it again so I’m glad you’re explaining lol
One thing that wasn't addressed in this video, but may somewhat explain the escalating surrealism, is that Beau stops taking any sort of medication after running from Roger's house. While it's clear he has many issues, the insanity of the situation really ratchets up at that point. Anyone that's been in the sad position of trying to help someone schizophrenic who's stopped taking their meds will understand that after Beau wakes up in the forest, he's no longer in reality. The truth probably is, his mother is actually dead which caused Beau to have a mental break, Roger and his family were assigned to look after him, and he wandered into the forest under the influence of his hallucinations only to die of exposure. Edit: it would also explain a lot of the whys of the earlier portions of the story. I can't speak from experience, but I don't think people with even severe anxiety hallucinate someone kicking their doors in like the Incredible Hulk or an entire neighborhood of people storming an apartment building only to specifically trash just their residence and MURDER SOMEONE IN THEIR DOORWAY. I haven't seen the film, but from what I gathered from this video, Beau's mental problems are never specifically named. If you start from the basis that he has poorly managed schizophrenia rather than anxiety, the entire plot makes complete sense.
No matter how insane the plot gets everything can still be explained some way, so I don't buy that as reasoning for why everything is fake when Aster said it isn't.
@@lilaclunablossom Two Beaus? A giant waterlogged arena where he's judged for things nobody possibly could have witnessed or recorded? His "father" being a giant dick monster? A guy who machine guns himself into oblivion returning from the dead? All those things can "Still be explained?" Cmon dude Aster's two previous films have both operated under levels of ambiguity as to the events of the stories. Like in Hereditary, we're never explicitly told that Paimon is a real entity, we simply infer it due to the things that take place seemingly being supernatural, when they could simply be the dark places the boy's head goes after accidentally killing his sister. All three films could just as easily be treatises on insanity with unreliable narrators, as opposed to being taken at face value.
From the beginning I didn't even think his thoughts were too exaggerated, which probably others do. This movie is a great portrayal how anxiety feels like, even to us, who are not complete recluses and still live a normal day to day. It is just so hard bc every little things occupies the mind so much and can ruin a perfectly good day. Even a 2 min walk in a slightly crowded area with people just minding their business feels like a war zone. No wonder many also have OCD as the compulsive and intrusive thoughts are overlapping with anxiety.
I have severe anxiety and I both love and hate how right this movie gets it. There was a time in my life when I was scared to eat or drink for fear of choking or developing an allergy suddenly. I still have flare up where I get ridiculously worked up over basically nothing
I think any interpretation that says "this is mostly in Beau's head" missed the mark of what the movie is saying. Yes, it's all crazy and surreal. The movie is also pretty explicit that all of this is REALLY happening, being deeply and intimately orchestrated by Beau's mother. From his perspective, he is unaware of this for most of the film and in shock of all the insanity, but the climax spells out that yes, this is like Hereditary where his strings have been pulled from the very beginning
It was all a dream/delusion/simulation is as contrived as the protagonist was the ghost this whole time trope. While it can work occasionally when done with full intention, I think it does most movies dirty if applied all willynilly just because we don't want to engage with the actual film we saw. Ari Aster wants us to engage with the film as it is, not how we can warp it to be something else. What I now want to see is an analysis on all the MW products and advertisements. Beau is literally the star in all these ads, and so in theory he should be living in a mansion not his mother's most miserable apartment building.
I was so excited to share the little foreshadowing easer egg I discovered, about the toy boat capsizing near the beginning of the film. As per usual, you were already on it! Low-key my favorite part of the film is the scary punk rocker yelling: "It's hot!!" and disgustedly throwing his free soup on the ground.
As someone with anxiety, this channel really connects me to the genre. I can say that I’ve seen the disturbing scenes form movies with out actually having to *see* them if you know what I mean. Hearing things described while they happen helps me feel more aware of what I’m watching and it gets rid of the existential dread some films leave behind after watching them. Good content as always!
Yesss! I want a follow up video please! This is my favorite movie for 2023, it's so deep, yet, simple. It has so many layers to it's story... you do really good, at finding things I miss. I would love to hear more.
I’ll always love Ari Aster’s films. Maybe not for the stories, but for the pure cinematography. Every shot is a piece of art in each movie… beautiful. Thank you for the recap!!
As much as I know these movies are great, your channel is how I experience a lot of these films. You present it in such a unique and engaging way that makes me feel like I’m still watching the movie. Love the channel!!
PLEASE! More about this movie. It's such a trip. I watched it on acid, and I think it makes even less sense sober. It captivated me and I couldn't look away. It's one of those movies you can watch a second or even third time and still feel like you're watching it for the first time.
As someone who’s anxiety has gone through the roof when unexpected events happen, this hit way, way too hard. Beau would have been me if I didn’t manage to get my anxiety under control because holy SHIT, that fear of leaving your door unlocked or forgetting something crucial to you well-being is such a fear that resonated with me too many times.
My anxiety sometimes feel like this, while I understand it's not a normal response I can't control it and once it starts the thoughts keep circling till I take my medication (sometimes I may stop it by myself when something trivial triggered it like too many people in the street but if it's something a bit closer to a real problem, no way). It's like something happens I have a reaction but instead of just going forward my mind rewinds right to the start, I have this reaction again and it keeps repeaing I keep thinking about it and with each circle the problem seems bigger. Usually I just want to die to stop it, but as I know that at some point it will pass I don't act on it. In my worst episodes my mind just freezes, I feel like I'm passing out (I probaly am because normally the sounds disappear or I hear it like from affar and everything slowly goes dark, never lost conscience so far but had to sit down various times to avoid falling). This ones are the worst because if such episode happens I know my day is ruined, as migraine usually follows right after on top the episodes are mentally draining. By now I lost any hope to have a normal life without medication, as long as it stops the panic attacks I don't care really care to be fair. I just wish my mind stopped contemplating death as the solution for every problem, it's not a nice though especially when I’m not suicidal, curious how even when not planning it something inside just screams death is much more easier than go trough this torture. Anyway, at least I realize that it's not a normal response and that while going trough it I should ignore thoughts like this, there are people who sadly can’t. So it always can be worse, I feel deeply for people who have another mental problem on top of anxiety even if mine can be excessive at least I know it will stop and once my mind is clear I can deal with whatever caused it, I can't imagine someone going trough a panic attack and not understanding at that moment that it's a panic attack it's too horrible and probably similar to what the protagonist in this movie experiences, he has panic attacks but on top he also has hallucinations.
I’m a massive Pink Floyd fan so I’m a little biased, but this film seems really thematically similar to “The Wall” album; The role of a missing father and fixation on that disappearance, the effects of an over-bearing mother who demonstrates toxic love, the questioning of one’s self when hidden behind a wall, or in this case, fear. Even the imaginary kangaroo court in the ending is reminiscent of one of the final songs on the album aptly titled “The Trial”. Overall just a very fascinating parallel in how each version goes about telling the story in a very different manner, one being an ambiguous album from almost 50 years ago and the other being an incredibly stylized 3 hour movie, yet both resolve in a frightening similar manner with the protagonist of each story, Pink and Beau respectively, following an almost identical narrative arc of bouncing from extremes in an attempt to sustain the cracks placed in their minds from an early age. Although the Napoleon film kinda infuriated me, I am glad to see Phoenix starring in another deep subjective film.
I just watched it last night. Like most Ari Aster films, I had moments of confusion, but my anxiety was at an all time high (just like Beau). It gave me a David Lynch like surrealism perspective. It also demonstrated how powerful anxiety is. It’s clear he has a toxic relationship with his mother and the narrative regarding grief was a powerful variable in reinforcing his debilitating anxiety.
I took the film much more literally. Everything we see happens and is orchestrated by Mona. I think from the point he missed his flight she flipped a switch and put a plan to action. Trying to force him through tests to become the man she expects without realizing she caused him to be the way he is. Mona owns the apartment. So she controls the environment. The lady that is Holly from the office really sells it for me, I can't remember her name. She's in the photo making up Mona at the end yeah but she also says certain things like I'm a mother too. Shouting it to the camera. She calls Beau a devil, because she has only heard of the man she is being paid to have there. The one Mona has built up. She sees him now. For the devil he supposedly is. I don't think something like her dialogue could be in Beaus head if certain fears are manifesting. She tries to break him out of it too with the notes and the moment before the tv. The husband really drills it in that it's his decision. He has to choose. Giving him every chance to pass the test. But Jeeves getting out wasn't part of the test. The daughter drinking paint is the ultimate wild card that Mona didn't predict. A lady who has her own town could do that for sure. I also like that the reporter that talks about blood and guts reporting is probably quoting the news anchor Christine Chubbuck
All of that paired with the fact that Aster's previous movies Hereditary and Midsommar both have themes of someone/a group of people orchestrating the entire story from the beginning makes this entirely plausible
@@jaredhenager9379 Exactly. I think it was really just a push from Mona to have Beau grow up a bit while she didn't understand that she was the cause. I also think that Elaine and her mother were there on the boat because of Mona. The odds that there is another child there would be pretty high, so I think it's more likely that Mona paid to have her there as a "preferred" partner for Beau. The mom when she pulls Elaine out isn't saying sorry because she barged in, but sorry because she isn't keeping up their end of the deal.
@@TDdelta777 When you say Aging do you mean during the play? I think that was just a delusion triggered by the story that was intentionally his story. An attempt to show him what COULD be from Mona, trying to get him to act. I think this is substantiated by the guy in the suit that keeps saying, "why am I here?". Imagine he was a corporate worker for Mona that somehow ended up there when he wasn't supposed to be there. OR, you could say he was still an employee of Mona, but planted there as an auditory trigger because Beau asks a lot "what am I doing?" or "what should I do". The Trial. It's kind of harder to explain, but for me I just chalk it up to it's not OUR world, if that makes sense. Their reality can be vastly different than ours, and if Mona who has such a control over our world that she basically has her own town and can pay people to die for her, nothing really shocks me from her end.
The shots of him just standing there for hours at a time as the world just keeps on going, is so relatable. I can’t even count how many time I’ve done that. Just standing there blank expression on my face staring at nothing in particular, only to zone back in and realize an hour or two went by.
This is one of my favorite movies tbh. There are so many little Details in this movie. But one of my favorite things is the ice cream eating guy. He appears early in the film when beau leaves his therapist, on the cruise ship, at the end of the hall when young Elaine is knocking on doors to tell them about the body, and in his mothers house at the end of the film. There are definitely more that I missed, but those are the ones I remember.
I was having a discussion about this movie the other day. I was asked what the movie was about, and I honestly didn't know how to answer that question. I never knew what was real or not throughout the whole thing.
Just found out from this video that this movie wasn’t received well. That really disappoints me, this movie is a ride! And speaks volumes on anxiety and paranoia. The cinematography, the score, the sets, imagery, the metaphors, even colors. The way they all come together makes something beautifully unique, truly have never seen anything like this film. My jaw was dropped for easily 80% of the movie
I have PTSD and AvPD, I am 8 mins in and I feel like I am watching a weird version of my life. Beau running across the street, feeling like it's a war zone is so relatable. I was declared disabled due to my disorders and have a service pup, my pup will have to stop me all the time because weird things will just feel like life or death. Literally standing in the same isle as someone else at the store puts everything on high alert for me. The most frustrating part, logically I know there is nothing to be afraid of, but my body just reacts. Anyone else who gets really sick due to anxiety or also has PNES, I feel for you!
This movie stressed me the fuck out LOL theres a lot of experiences and topics that hit a little too close home for me personally. I absolutely adore this movie, and Im glad to still see people talking about it.
I refuse to see this film without acid but the stuff is like impossible to pay for and take home, they always want you to do it with them for free, kinda creepy actually. like it's not really that generous if they are like trying to use the drugs to force you to have some pre association with them. i don't believe in that willy wallawoo shit i just wanna watch movies on the stuff
42:25 this footage is not magically obtained. There are cameras everywhere in this world. We see one in there therapists office and Grace demonstrates their presence in her own home
The “trial” at this movie was reminiscent to me of Albert Brooks’ character defending his life in order to ascend to the next plain of the afterlife in the movie-‘Defending Your Life.’ Trying to prove that he has conquered the fears in his earthbound life.
First of all, your stuff is always awesome. You clarify things really well. 110% even if it is just your personal interpretations of things at points, that has awesome value. Please absolutely do a follow up video for this one! At 3 hours it is understandable that there was already so much to cover. You did a great job giving a longer video than some of your other Endings Explained and I wouldn't mind a Part 2 in the slightest, when you find the energy to tackle it again. Thanks for everything! Edit: My own take on the movie...it does feel a lot like the overwhelming difficulty people in power and wealth can have. Sorta like the whole Brittany Spears struggle and how hard it was for her to get both legal and actual grips on her life. I think Beau is literally struggling in a legal battle, with the desire to break free from his moms grips. But she has had such control over how he made his money, how he was portrayed to the world as a pharmaceutical celebrity. I think that rebellious part of Beau finally made a bid to break free from his mom legally, and the mega powerful Mom responded to the betrayal by literally using everything in her power and authority to "incriminate" him. I think when he was told to stop incriminating himself someone who had known him for so long and seen his struggle was trying to reveal the behind the scenes plays being done to frame him as completely incapable. The mom can pull serious strings as the people she has helped all have deep trauma that required her pharmaceuticals to overcome, thus even the best intentioned people can be made to come undone and twisted into an enemy. The powerless feeling of someone who has been made out to be crazy because they struggle with legitimate mental illness....to prove to the world you have a grip on reality, to have that weakness exploited...god so much powerful stuff.
You need to just watch the movie and you don't think too much about it. I completely adore it. I noticed though Elaine dies quiet differently in the directors cut. With a view of Beu's distended nuts.
The most freeing words my Therapist ever said to me were *“You know that you could marry the perfect man, have perfect children and a perfect house, job and life AND your mother Still wouldn’t be happy with you right?”* My stunned and timid yes helped me and all of my siblings to heal immensely. ❤️ You can’t live for them, since it will Never be enough. You have to break the cycle and live for you. 🫂
So much of this movie reminds me of reoccurring bad dreams I've had since a kid: 1. Running late for work/school while all these ridiculous things keep happening to you, preventing you from being where you need to be 2. Being naked out in public 3. Being in both 1st person view and 3rd person view at the same time (or seeing another version of yourself) 4. Having a spider on the loose, running around in the house 5. People and places suddenly morphing and changing randomly to someone/someplace else (or being in two places at one) 6. Crawling up into a tight space, and not being able to get back out 7. Needing a drink, but not being able to find water anywhere
This movie is basically what happens when you are born to a mother who has dominated most of the country through the selling of addictive drugs and now has massive influence farther than the reaches of any massive goliath today like Amazon or Google. The mother then uses that influence to influence everyone against you to torture you for having emotions an impairments brought upon by a drugged up life you probably had no choice in partaking in since you were a kid, and those common traits produced by a helicopter parent in their kids: fear, anxiety, introversion, etc.
19:13 The part where her face changes in the scene while yelling at Beau freaks me the F out haha. Like the scene in The Prodigy where the boys face turns into the serial killers face!!
I love this film! I like how it’s essentially an adventure film where everything that could go wrong, does go wrong. Regular adventures has the protagonist get into a bunch of trouble, but always finds a way to work in their favor. They always get lucky. Here he always gets bad luck throughout his entire journey. This is just scratching the surface of the film too, but if I were to explain it to a philistine, this would be the easiest explanation of it.
My sister was born with the umbilical cord around her throat and she had extremely bad anxiety. She has unhinged anxiety I.E. "there's a tooth growing in my throat". She didn't eat for a week because she swallowed gum and only drank soy sauce. I always told my parents that because she was breech that it might've affected her ability to survive so she acted out. My parents blame her for their demise but I love my sister ! She is healthy and doing SO well! She is a paralegal but doesn't talk to my family.
I still have questions. Did Beau actually die? If so, how? Did he actually end up having sex? If so how did Elaine die? What the note on the napkin mean? Was that man in the woods actually his father? Where had his father been all this time if he wasn’t dead?
I think youre overthinking. Take it as "this is what people with severe anxiety/near schizophrenia thinks will happen" every situation and scenario leading to the most catastrophic conclusion, and then the next.
I know that people keep on saying that this movie is like one giant anxiety-triggered nervous breakdown, but I agree so much. The catastrophizing, the worst case scenario seeming to be the most likely outcome everywhere, the idea that everyone inherently hates you or is out to harm you. Also, the feeling that you aren’t capable of doing anything successfully on your own, that you’re inherently a complete failure and that you will stay that way. Losing yourself in versions of reality you create in your head that will never actually happen. It’s genuinely really hard.
When he mentioned Beau "coming to some strange craggy island", I wouldn't have been that astonished had Father Jack materialised, shouting "Feck off!" at that point in the story (41:32)... Just remembered it's 3 hours long as well.
Im a fan of Aster's work and even though I didn't get this movie and didn't really enjoy it, I can appreciate him at least trying something different. I compair this to Skinamerink , not in style but just trying to be different. But different doesn't automatically mean good because both of these were a chore to get through
As soon as I saw this I came to RUclips to see if you covered this cause I was just right confused. It took a couple months but thank you. Thank you so much…
Beau is afraid is one of the most abstract movies out there to the point where it wasn’t that good. You still wanna have some progression or some plot. I finally understand some of it but still 3 hours is a crazy runtime for this.
I kinda checked out eventually when I was watching it. It needs to be a tighter, shorter film, but it gets really carried away to the point of too many scenes IMHO.
Welcome to the Ari Aster school of filmmaking. Take a relatively simple topic like "dominant mother" and make it seems as complex an complicated as possible. Slap in some disconnected monster/gore scene for the trailer. Bloat it up 2,5 hours of runtime. Hide cryptic messages and visual cues in your movie so it seems like the movie is much deeper and more complex then it actually is. fail at the box office.
The first time I watched this I went, "Damn I hope FoundFlix talks about this" because I had NO idea what was going on. SO THANK YOU!!!
You and me both!
Damn, it's sad that people need RUclipsrs to think for them.
@@PhaggyJames Damn, it’s sad how people take the time to be a dick in a RUclips comment section
@@PhaggyJames My Guy you are Here yourself....
@@PhaggyJames you need to get your head out of your ass. Some people can’t break things down and confusing ass movies and others are really good at explaining it. It’s been like that forever and there’s nothing wrong with it.
So much of this feels like a metaphor of how anxiety disorders feel like to a person, and how it makes negative experiences go from 'I made a mistake' to 'I am the worst person ever'. With anxiety disorders, you always think pf the worst case scenerio, even if it is completely ridiculous.
Couple this with a mother who is suffering from her own disorders. We don't know the full picture of his mother, but we know the parts he's had to deal with: perfectionist, controlling, narcissistic.
It's a portrait of a person with a severe anxiety disorder going through a mental breakdown, with an increasingly surreal world where everything you try to attach to for love/stability capsizes, or comes at a cost.
Read this and somehow knew you were a girl.
I have several anxiety disorders and you're exactly right. To people without anxiety it might seem overdramatic but that's literally what it feels like.
uhm this is scary similar to my life anxiety and mother wise wtf .. 🫣
@@mumenRhyder im starting college again tomorrow (same college ive been at for a year) and ive had 3 anxiety attacks and I couldnt get an hour of sleep, OVER NOTHING. Anxiety is the worst shit ever
@milesclaussen3689 literally. Something could be slightly off and my brain reacts like my life is in danger. Like chill 😭
As someone who has severe anxiety that’s resulted in agoraphobia, this movie feels so real for the dumb stupid fears I deal with, the worst case scenarios and such
Same!!!
frrrr… the scene where he leaves the door open and the whole street goes in had me like “damn that’s real asf 😭”
Yup same worst thing is I know my thoughts are stupid
As someone who has severe anxiety (struggle to even speak to immediately family without drugs) idk wtf you mean this movie made no fucking sense anxiety is nothing like this.
this was like taking every drug in the world at the same fucking time and trying to find meaning in the fucking mudpile you just turned your brain into...
Autism and in turn agoraphobia truly has obliterated my life, there's no work in the quiet places like the countryside and the cities just keep expanding. Horrible
This movie reminds me of when you have a dream and you can’t even do the simplest stuff without all this crap happening lol.
Yessssssss
I thought this whole film was going to be about Beau having a wet dream one time about his mum.
Beau is Afraid and Uncut Gems are the most unrelentingly stressful movies I’ve ever seen
Honorable mention : Whiplash
Uncut Gems REALLY stresses me out everytime I watch it.
Uncut Gems was insane. The ending!
Deadass! 😂
I had to get new boxers mid movie
I think that the cop thought that Beau was the birthday boy stabber.
Absolutely
Also thought that or it could’ve been a regular cop and that’s the best part about those specific choices
When I was homeless and was sleeping in my secret base(it was a attic type thing in a business building) and I woke to two electricians working on the electric box there. I said good morning and I'll get going. But then they said they are almost done and to stay and get more sleep. Maybe someday I'll write my memoirs
Yes.
You genuinely should
Thanks to people giving me a push, I've started writing prologue now.
@@misuvittupaa8068 take your time. Consider how you'd like the piece of literature and how it will be structured. Do you tell your stories from your perspective now? Or then? Chronology? What is the message?
Just trying to give you some thinking food m8
@@CarlTheSpud thanks for tips. But making those kind of things were next on my list. Only thing I've decided that I will be the narrator+point of character. I probably need to find some site where I can get help when I run in problems:)
For me, there is a lot of implication that Mona was SAing Beau, trying to literally morph him into the husband she lost while still attempting to keep him an innocent boy. The anxiety about sex, the one girl he had attraction to acting like his mother, and Mona constantly deflecting all his mistakes and her grievances on him all point to someone who was kept in perpetual childhood for his mother's own sick needs. When Beau started to grow and ask questions, she immediately goes into aggressive mode and pretend that she's being hurt. In reality, Beau is just growing up and Mona can't stand it. She wants to have the best of both worlds, husband and child, all at the same time. Beau also seems to hide from her a great deal, almost as if he's trying to prevent abuse from happening. Beau crying for help at the end is him begging for assistance from his mom's incessant cruelty.
See i got that same thing from it also. I was like why shed freak out from him kissing Elaine? I thought oh its bc weird stranger girl but it seemed more than that.
That's a good encapsulation.
At the "trial" in the end, the doctor says Beau gave someone else a gift that was preserved for his mother (for a second I thought he was talking about his v).
Then he refers to the ceramic figure Beau bought for his mom at the beginning, but it could be a metaphor
Reverse Oedipus complex or Munchhausen by proxy is my biggest take away here too! Felt very much in line with your theory
Especially the scene with people breaking and entering his home. Felt invasive and scary!
HOLY SHIT WE CAN SAY RAPE
the whole theater audibly would go "what the fuck" several times through out the films, it was awesome
i have bad anxiety and grew up with chronic guilt. this movie hit way too close to home. confusion, scared of the world, and feeling like the worst person in the world. i’m really glad im able to work through it, connect with the world, and realize that there’s nothing wrong with me
You were right to feel that way. There is definitely something wrong with you.
@@Athenasblaze Do you honestly not understand what she meant through that statement given her previous claim about guilt?
Amen ! There's nothing wrong with you and isolating yourself really only robs the world of everything you have to offer. You were meant to shine so don't hide yourself and don't let yourself be bullied by your own thought. Love you (so does Jesus), take care love ! ❤
49 minute found flix episode? What a treat!
I thought the same exact thing 😅lol
The movie is like 3 hours long
I loved this movie! I really felt the anxiety and thought process behind Beau’s character! I loved how characters hint that Beau is on trial. He knows he isn’t doing anything wrong, and is desperately trying not to upset anyone around him, but still his actions are seen as transgressions against his mother further cementing why his mind works this way!
When I saw the thumbnail, I thought "Holy shit, he's actually gonna try and explain it..."
Most people will not like this movie. I loved it. I also hated it. I would not watch it again, but I am glad that I did, and found it in equal parts entertaining and baffling.
My take was that his mother used him as a pharmaceutical test subject when he was a child and did irreparable damage to his mind. Just as he can never tell what's real, neither can we observers.
Yes all those side effects have damaged his brain and thought so much
Yeha, I walked out of this film thinking, that was amazing, never wanna see it again........mabey one more time.
His meds probably STILL come from Mona. Mona has an impossibly powerful monopoly after making a deal with a god of fertility, Beau's dad aka the penis monster
The unreliable narrator
I think you perfectly captured exactly how I feel about this movie. I couldn't quite articulate it but you nailed it.
Fun fact, for the name of the town - Wasserton - “Wasser” means water in German!
Exactly, and "Ton" means sound. The word "Wasserton" describes the sound produced by a body of water or waterfall
And he is Wasserman… the water man
@@adamlunter9958 wassermann is in german the word for the zodiac sign aquarius
This movie was the most stressed I've ever been watching anything. And I'm a big horror movie fan. I had to pause it several times to catch my breath. It was so well made. I can relate to him a little too much, extreme anxiety is so difficult to live with. I both love and hate this movie- another one that hits unrelentlessly hard is I'm Thinking of Ending Things. It made me deeply uncomfortable but it was also beautiful
Same. Ending things hit way too close to home and almost made me cry because I could 100% see this happening to me.
Imagine having to pause the fictional movie to catch your breath?😂
Bruh this generations are doomed 🥶
@@Zizi1312 Don't be a jerk.
Be grateful you don't deal with extreme anxiety like the main character. It's not that far from how it really feels. @@Zizi1312
@@Zizi1312imagine being so soulless that you refused to believe fiction can affect others to the point of extreme stress, yknow, like the movie was supposed to????
As someone with severe anxiety, this film made sense. It does genuinely feel like the world is directly against you. The only voice of reason you have gets squashed out by the rest of the negative thoughts like it showed in the court scene. Turning situations that aren't even remotely bad into one's that feel like it was the worst experience you could have had. Always expecting the worst to happen when doing something which in turn becomes a self fulfilling prophecy. It's really rough.
You aren't crazy but you're always terrified and alone and it feels like noone wants to help. You also don't have the tools to help yourself in most situations so it's just constricting.
That sounds quite a bit like weaponized emotional incest, trying to convince a son that nobody is worthy to "replace" his mother.
Dude, now that you stay that, I am reminded of those toxic boy-moms. Oof
My interpretation/theory is that Beau was actually too paranoid to be born in the first place. The entire apartment part was his perspective from the womb, where he imagined what the world is based off what his mom tells him- One day he'd be an old man, there's dead bodies in the street, tattooed people are evil, being a big crybaby over a spider, etc. His flight was his actual birthday that he missed because he couldnt lock up behind him and stayed behind, but when he broke away for water his apartment got destroyed and couldn't get back in and has to spend a night on the (abdominal) scaffolding. Once he did get back inside he remembers that someone could barge in and kill him (aborted) so he barricades himself inside and decides maybe he should leave which is when he calls his mom and a delivery person told him that his mom has "lost her head" (in reality Beaus mom is freaking out because her labor has gotten complicated while the person delivering tries to get beau to come out) and after he gets pushed outside in the nude and evades birthday suit stabby man (Dr choppy pp interpretation) he's smacked by a delivery truck (Probably the moment hes spanked)
The next section he's literally saved by Grace, so Beau is probably imagining living with faith off what he's been told as well- The father performs miracles, their only son sacrificed their life, they have a recording of everything that has and will happen. The buzzer he uses to first call Grace is like an answered prayer, and the first thing Grace asks is "Did you press the button [Pray]?". The medicated (conditioned) soldiers name is Jeeves like a butler, so we can imply he does what told while Grace also mentions he doesnt know what hes doing, so he might be a representation of the unconscious followers. After Grace turns and sees Beau as a demon she grabs a sword which could symbolize waging war, because she then uses the soldier for perceived revenge. Importantly, in some faiths people are born sinners before they're purified, so this could be a root for his anxiety- that he's "guilty" before he's even done anything. There's a religious billboard outside Beaus apartment window that could symbolize both how big of a presence religion has in Beaus existence and also how he believes it's always looming overhead observing him. In the beginning of the movie, the box of trinkets that Beau chooses the figurine from could symbolize him selecting his faith (As a gift to his mom) and when the cabinet is opened the glass reflects the man who's threatening to jump off the building. Toni says that Beau has been being tested, while her friend Liz randomly appears in the forest part. They both film Beau, which could imply they're "angels with a million eyes" [if a video is worth a million views], where Toni could be an angel either testing Beau to atone or guiding his soul to the afterlife like a psychopomp, while her friend Liz could be Lucifer/Satan, the fallen angel which explains her appearance in the forest. Beau being stabbed by Birthdaysuit Stabby Man in two spots could be how Beau immediately gets his pp and umbilical cord cut, but the "puss-like" wound on his side could also be a brand, seeing how Beaus test could be to admitting he's a coward (which immediately concluded the forest).
The forest could represent the absence of religion or his mom's description of satanism, which embraces freedom of will rather than vindicating it. The excluded and the lost ("Orphaned") put on the play of life creating their own stories, in which doing so Beau finds himself, until the wrath of Grace disturbs the peace. Theres a rehearsal where a man talks about blindly choosing between roads (faith) and if following one backtracks another, and another person who mentions hearing trumpets when its too late (Biblical Apocalypse). Theres a woman singing a song with the lyrics "You can give your life, you can lose your soul, you can bang your head or you can drown in a hole", which could reference Beaus choice between regretfully giving his life to faith or ending things by "drowning in a hole". After hes embraced the forest and "committed entirely" by giving the trinket to Penelope, he's smitten and zapped by electricity like a higher power striking down a heathen who has rejected faith.
In the house section, the town and the company is named after Beaus mom because everything in his existence has been because of and a part of her, the W logo in the poster for the apartment can be seen as a "house" between two legs, Beaus Mom mentions 'Squeezing but getting nothing in return', and Beau encounters the only memory he'd have of seeing his dad. This section could represent something along the lines of either remembrance or control, with how what starts as a funeral dives into repressed memories, or how it seemed Beaus mother tried to oversee and manipulate Beau all his existence. The catering van outside is named after Shiva the destroyer, so maybe this is a representation of Beaus existence flashing before his eyes before death, all of which Beau shared with his mom even while she was working or medicated, and him being reunited with his loved ones in the afterlife. Since we see Elaine die by the family curse and is there when other Beau gets locked away, they could both be representations of who he could've been. The cruise could've been a representation of his mom's body carrying life like a vessel, with everyone on board an egg, which could explain the body in the pool (whos name is Gene, like a gene pool) while also impling that Elaine is actually Beaus fraternal twin seeing how they're the only children on the cruise, Beau just didnt realize they share the same mother (Also remember Elaines choice of words to describe her mother and asks if Beaus is the same). I think there's also something to be said with how Cruise Mona is a hopeful mother while Adult Mona is a scorn mother like her own mother was. There are times where she physically changes which could be showing how Mona "becomes" her own mother. This cycle of becoming your mother could explain why Elaine starts to put on Monas make-up
The final part is where Beau expects to be judged as hes been told he would at the end of his life. His face before he sets sail is stuck in a gasping expression possibly exactly how his rigor mortis has set in, Beau is taken by boat towards his judgment like Charon carried those down the Styx towards the underworld. After his 1800DEFENSE lawyer is 'stoned to death', Beau realizes that he can't call for help and accepts death. IIRC my mom had taught me the lords prayer to include "Thy Kingdom Come, Thy will be done", so if Beau was interpretting religion earlier it might explain how Beau "came" to his end in the final scene. I don't think he ever actually lived, but the anxiety stemmed by his anxiously religious mother made him paranoid about being born a sinner and was too afraid to live and he accidentally caused a complicated delivery that he didn't survive and instead experienced all the fears he thought would happen described by the only person he knew
If Beau didn't survive being born then that could explain why he wasn't screaming in the beginning despite being such an anxious soul. I still find more little details everytime I rewatch with this perspective too, like how his mom's number is listed as Home, or how his apartment entrance (next to the XXX store) is a pair of narrow flesh toned hallways leading straight to Beaus bare-walled room (With something special at the end of the first hallway). The therapist visit in the beginning might actually be the last check up with the baby doctor, who he imagines looks a bit like a doctor sized baby, which explains how he shared information with Beaus mom. During that visit Beau is asked how long its been since he's visited his mom and he says 'Several months', and the doctors office has an abundance of bonsai trees which might symbolize growing life that's been pruned to take a desired form, both mentally by controlling his faith and physically by getting pruned by Dr choppy pp
Edit: 5:16 The name of the show with the header "Tonight at 8PM" pretty much foreshadows this entire theory and can't just be a coincidence 👀
Edit 2: the grandmother's picture looks exactly like an incantation bowl used to prevent Lilith from taking babies during or after birth. Mona also shapeshifts (watch for the color green), just like Lilith can.
This is a fun take
I genuinely believe that this might be the real fucking idea.
Ari Aster reading this "I should have thought of that"
This sounds spot on. There's a lot that works with this. I enjoyed reading that
This comment is a whole ass video
As someone who has suffered from life-long anxiety, this movie hits hard. They did a great job at portraying anxiety. I kinda hope some of my family sees the movie so they understand me a bit more
This was a personal attack I was going through a crisis and kept having dreams like this for years then I finally got to a point where I was stable and feeling confident then boom the trailer drops looking way too close to my reoccurring dreams with my god damn name slapped on it taunting me the cabal be wylin out here fr
Coincidences are weird.
word
It was meant to be
You might just have a schizoid personality disorder.
ari aster bamboozled you
This movie was crazyyyy. You won’t ever be bored lmao. Literally a 3 hour panic attack lol. Will never watch it again so I’m glad you’re explaining lol
One thing that wasn't addressed in this video, but may somewhat explain the escalating surrealism, is that Beau stops taking any sort of medication after running from Roger's house. While it's clear he has many issues, the insanity of the situation really ratchets up at that point. Anyone that's been in the sad position of trying to help someone schizophrenic who's stopped taking their meds will understand that after Beau wakes up in the forest, he's no longer in reality. The truth probably is, his mother is actually dead which caused Beau to have a mental break, Roger and his family were assigned to look after him, and he wandered into the forest under the influence of his hallucinations only to die of exposure.
Edit: it would also explain a lot of the whys of the earlier portions of the story. I can't speak from experience, but I don't think people with even severe anxiety hallucinate someone kicking their doors in like the Incredible Hulk or an entire neighborhood of people storming an apartment building only to specifically trash just their residence and MURDER SOMEONE IN THEIR DOORWAY.
I haven't seen the film, but from what I gathered from this video, Beau's mental problems are never specifically named. If you start from the basis that he has poorly managed schizophrenia rather than anxiety, the entire plot makes complete sense.
No matter how insane the plot gets everything can still be explained some way, so I don't buy that as reasoning for why everything is fake when Aster said it isn't.
Love this explanation ❤️
@@lilaclunablossom Two Beaus? A giant waterlogged arena where he's judged for things nobody possibly could have witnessed or recorded? His "father" being a giant dick monster? A guy who machine guns himself into oblivion returning from the dead? All those things can "Still be explained?" Cmon dude
Aster's two previous films have both operated under levels of ambiguity as to the events of the stories. Like in Hereditary, we're never explicitly told that Paimon is a real entity, we simply infer it due to the things that take place seemingly being supernatural, when they could simply be the dark places the boy's head goes after accidentally killing his sister. All three films could just as easily be treatises on insanity with unreliable narrators, as opposed to being taken at face value.
You haven't seen the film and yet are able to explain it in a way that makes sense
Tattooed guy wasn’t murdered, he was bitten by that Brown recluse
From the beginning I didn't even think his thoughts were too exaggerated, which probably others do. This movie is a great portrayal how anxiety feels like, even to us, who are not complete recluses and still live a normal day to day. It is just so hard bc every little things occupies the mind so much and can ruin a perfectly good day. Even a 2 min walk in a slightly crowded area with people just minding their business feels like a war zone. No wonder many also have OCD as the compulsive and intrusive thoughts are overlapping with anxiety.
I have severe anxiety and I both love and hate how right this movie gets it. There was a time in my life when I was scared to eat or drink for fear of choking or developing an allergy suddenly. I still have flare up where I get ridiculously worked up over basically nothing
I think any interpretation that says "this is mostly in Beau's head" missed the mark of what the movie is saying. Yes, it's all crazy and surreal. The movie is also pretty explicit that all of this is REALLY happening, being deeply and intimately orchestrated by Beau's mother. From his perspective, he is unaware of this for most of the film and in shock of all the insanity, but the climax spells out that yes, this is like Hereditary where his strings have been pulled from the very beginning
Thank you!
Agreed, completely. There is a lot more going on than what is shown onscreen.
It was all a dream/delusion/simulation is as contrived as the protagonist was the ghost this whole time trope. While it can work occasionally when done with full intention, I think it does most movies dirty if applied all willynilly just because we don't want to engage with the actual film we saw.
Ari Aster wants us to engage with the film as it is, not how we can warp it to be something else.
What I now want to see is an analysis on all the MW products and advertisements. Beau is literally the star in all these ads, and so in theory he should be living in a mansion not his mother's most miserable apartment building.
i literally watched this and hereditary back to back. the missing head of the body made audibly go “oh my god”
i dont care. it's all a dream because beau doesnt deserve what happened to him
I was so excited to share the little foreshadowing easer egg I discovered, about the toy boat capsizing near the beginning of the film. As per usual, you were already on it! Low-key my favorite part of the film is the scary punk rocker yelling: "It's hot!!" and disgustedly throwing his free soup on the ground.
"In the few seconds he was gone, both his keys and his luggage had disappeared." Hah big adhd energy.
As someone with anxiety, this channel really connects me to the genre. I can say that I’ve seen the disturbing scenes form movies with out actually having to *see* them if you know what I mean. Hearing things described while they happen helps me feel more aware of what I’m watching and it gets rid of the existential dread some films leave behind after watching them. Good content as always!
Beau really needs a hug
Yesss! I want a follow up video please! This is my favorite movie for 2023, it's so deep, yet, simple. It has so many layers to it's story... you do really good, at finding things I miss. I would love to hear more.
I’ll always love Ari Aster’s films. Maybe not for the stories, but for the pure cinematography. Every shot is a piece of art in each movie… beautiful. Thank you for the recap!!
Yeah but he’s making movies 😂
what?@@toptiertech7291
As much as I know these movies are great, your channel is how I experience a lot of these films. You present it in such a unique and engaging way that makes me feel like I’m still watching the movie. Love the channel!!
PLEASE! More about this movie.
It's such a trip. I watched it on acid, and I think it makes even less sense sober. It captivated me and I couldn't look away. It's one of those movies you can watch a second or even third time and still feel like you're watching it for the first time.
Yeah because nothing is going on 😂😂 you can watch it 100 times and nothing happens
@@toptiertech7291strongly disagree theres an abundance of things going on
I watch high on carts and fact i have anxiety myself it made things worse cuz it made me happy sad happy
I love how strangers online admits to using substances 😂 its so random like ur just admitting ur a pos person 😂
@@Inkpinkierosie75% of everyone u are ever going to meet are also pos people 😂😂 if u get out that much 😂
As someone who’s anxiety has gone through the roof when unexpected events happen, this hit way, way too hard. Beau would have been me if I didn’t manage to get my anxiety under control because holy SHIT, that fear of leaving your door unlocked or forgetting something crucial to you well-being is such a fear that resonated with me too many times.
My anxiety sometimes feel like this, while I understand it's not a normal response I can't control it and once it starts the thoughts keep circling till I take my medication (sometimes I
may stop it by myself when something trivial triggered it like too many people in the street but if it's something a bit closer to a real problem, no way).
It's like something happens I have a reaction but instead of just going forward my mind rewinds right to the start, I have this reaction again and it keeps repeaing I keep thinking about it and with each circle the problem seems bigger. Usually I just want to die to stop it, but as I know that at some point it will pass I don't act on it.
In my worst episodes my mind just freezes, I feel like I'm passing out (I probaly am because normally the sounds disappear or I hear it like from affar and everything slowly goes dark, never lost conscience so far but had to sit down various times to avoid falling). This ones are the worst because if such episode happens I know my day is ruined, as migraine usually follows right after on top the episodes are mentally draining. By now I lost any hope to have a normal life without medication, as long as it stops the panic attacks I don't care really care to be fair.
I just wish my mind stopped contemplating death as the solution for every problem, it's not a nice though especially when I’m not suicidal, curious how even when not planning it something inside just screams death is much more easier than go trough this torture. Anyway, at least I realize that it's not a normal response and that while going trough it I should ignore thoughts like this, there are people who sadly can’t.
So it always can be worse, I feel deeply for people who have another mental problem on top of anxiety even if mine can be excessive at least I know it will stop and once my mind is clear I can deal with whatever caused it, I can't imagine someone going trough a panic attack and not understanding at that moment that it's a panic attack it's too horrible and probably similar to what the protagonist in this movie experiences, he has panic attacks but on top he also has hallucinations.
I’m a massive Pink Floyd fan so I’m a little biased, but this film seems really thematically similar to “The Wall” album; The role of a missing father and fixation on that disappearance, the effects of an over-bearing mother who demonstrates toxic love, the questioning of one’s self when hidden behind a wall, or in this case, fear. Even the imaginary kangaroo court in the ending is reminiscent of one of the final songs on the album aptly titled “The Trial”. Overall just a very fascinating parallel in how each version goes about telling the story in a very different manner, one being an ambiguous album from almost 50 years ago and the other being an incredibly stylized 3 hour movie, yet both resolve in a frightening similar manner with the protagonist of each story, Pink and Beau respectively, following an almost identical narrative arc of bouncing from extremes in an attempt to sustain the cracks placed in their minds from an early age. Although the Napoleon film kinda infuriated me, I am glad to see Phoenix starring in another deep subjective film.
Who could’ve guessed that Joaquin Phoenix would get caught red handed showing feelings of an almost human nature? This will not do
Fuck you just just made me not wanna watch this you make me feel like I've already seen a better version
I just watched it last night. Like most Ari Aster films, I had moments of confusion, but my anxiety was at an all time high (just like Beau). It gave me a David Lynch like surrealism perspective. It also demonstrated how powerful anxiety is. It’s clear he has a toxic relationship with his mother and the narrative regarding grief was a powerful variable in reinforcing his debilitating anxiety.
Ari Aster's signature theme is dysfunctional family dynamics. This one takes the cake.
I took the film much more literally. Everything we see happens and is orchestrated by Mona. I think from the point he missed his flight she flipped a switch and put a plan to action. Trying to force him through tests to become the man she expects without realizing she caused him to be the way he is.
Mona owns the apartment. So she controls the environment. The lady that is Holly from the office really sells it for me, I can't remember her name.
She's in the photo making up Mona at the end yeah but she also says certain things like I'm a mother too. Shouting it to the camera. She calls Beau a devil, because she has only heard of the man she is being paid to have there. The one Mona has built up. She sees him now. For the devil he supposedly is.
I don't think something like her dialogue could be in Beaus head if certain fears are manifesting. She tries to break him out of it too with the notes and the moment before the tv.
The husband really drills it in that it's his decision. He has to choose. Giving him every chance to pass the test.
But Jeeves getting out wasn't part of the test. The daughter drinking paint is the ultimate wild card that Mona didn't predict.
A lady who has her own town could do that for sure.
I also like that the reporter that talks about blood and guts reporting is probably quoting the news anchor Christine Chubbuck
All of that paired with the fact that Aster's previous movies Hereditary and Midsommar both have themes of someone/a group of people orchestrating the entire story from the beginning makes this entirely plausible
@@jaredhenager9379 Exactly. I think it was really just a push from Mona to have Beau grow up a bit while she didn't understand that she was the cause. I also think that Elaine and her mother were there on the boat because of Mona. The odds that there is another child there would be pretty high, so I think it's more likely that Mona paid to have her there as a "preferred" partner for Beau. The mom when she pulls Elaine out isn't saying sorry because she barged in, but sorry because she isn't keeping up their end of the deal.
But what about him aging and the trial? Is it him just losing it after Mona triggered him too much?
@@TDdelta777 When you say Aging do you mean during the play? I think that was just a delusion triggered by the story that was intentionally his story. An attempt to show him what COULD be from Mona, trying to get him to act. I think this is substantiated by the guy in the suit that keeps saying, "why am I here?". Imagine he was a corporate worker for Mona that somehow ended up there when he wasn't supposed to be there. OR, you could say he was still an employee of Mona, but planted there as an auditory trigger because Beau asks a lot "what am I doing?" or "what should I do".
The Trial. It's kind of harder to explain, but for me I just chalk it up to it's not OUR world, if that makes sense. Their reality can be vastly different than ours, and if Mona who has such a control over our world that she basically has her own town and can pay people to die for her, nothing really shocks me from her end.
The shots of him just standing there for hours at a time as the world just keeps on going, is so relatable. I can’t even count how many time I’ve done that. Just standing there blank expression on my face staring at nothing in particular, only to zone back in and realize an hour or two went by.
I think everyone is so weird because it’s first being filtered through Beau’s anxiety and then he might also be tripping on the new medication
This is one of my favorite movies tbh. There are so many little Details in this movie. But one of my favorite things is the ice cream eating guy. He appears early in the film when beau leaves his therapist, on the cruise ship, at the end of the hall when young Elaine is knocking on doors to tell them about the body, and in his mothers house at the end of the film. There are definitely more that I missed, but those are the ones I remember.
i was waiting for you to explain the movie not just describe the literal movie happening
Are you new here 😂✨
I was having a discussion about this movie the other day. I was asked what the movie was about, and I honestly didn't know how to answer that question. I never knew what was real or not throughout the whole thing.
Just found out from this video that this movie wasn’t received well. That really disappoints me, this movie is a ride! And speaks volumes on anxiety and paranoia. The cinematography, the score, the sets, imagery, the metaphors, even colors. The way they all come together makes something beautifully unique, truly have never seen anything like this film. My jaw was dropped for easily 80% of the movie
I didn't watch the movie because it's 3 hours but I LOVE the 50 minute summary. There's a lot to this film and I appreciate all of the symbolism.
when she died on Beau, that shit was the scariest shit I had seen in a long.
I have PTSD and AvPD, I am 8 mins in and I feel like I am watching a weird version of my life. Beau running across the street, feeling like it's a war zone is so relatable. I was declared disabled due to my disorders and have a service pup, my pup will have to stop me all the time because weird things will just feel like life or death. Literally standing in the same isle as someone else at the store puts everything on high alert for me. The most frustrating part, logically I know there is nothing to be afraid of, but my body just reacts. Anyone else who gets really sick due to anxiety or also has PNES, I feel for you!
Don’t forget when Grace said to not say anything incriminating on the lil tissue, because she knew about the big trial at the end lol
This movie stressed me the fuck out LOL theres a lot of experiences and topics that hit a little too close home for me personally. I absolutely adore this movie, and Im glad to still see people talking about it.
Bro same they slapped my name on it aswell
I refuse to see this film without acid but the stuff is like impossible to pay for and take home, they always want you to do it with them for free, kinda creepy actually. like it's not really that generous if they are like trying to use the drugs to force you to have some pre association with them. i don't believe in that willy wallawoo shit i just wanna watch movies on the stuff
I hear you on that, man. This movie was like a near perfect cinematic metaphor for the feeling of extreme anxiety.
I’ve never agreed with a comment more!
It made me shit on myself. Literally
42:25 this footage is not magically obtained. There are cameras everywhere in this world. We see one in there therapists office and Grace demonstrates their presence in her own home
The “trial” at this movie was reminiscent to me of Albert Brooks’ character defending his life in order to ascend to the next plain of the afterlife in the movie-‘Defending Your Life.’ Trying to prove that he has conquered the fears in his earthbound life.
This movie looks like a fever dream. The headless open casket had me rolling
Yess!!!!! I’m so happy you’re reviewing this!!!
I literally watched this last night and felt a bit sad knowing you hadn’t covered this one yet.
Then today happened and you blessed us with this!
First of all, your stuff is always awesome. You clarify things really well. 110% even if it is just your personal interpretations of things at points, that has awesome value. Please absolutely do a follow up video for this one! At 3 hours it is understandable that there was already so much to cover. You did a great job giving a longer video than some of your other Endings Explained and I wouldn't mind a Part 2 in the slightest, when you find the energy to tackle it again.
Thanks for everything!
Edit: My own take on the movie...it does feel a lot like the overwhelming difficulty people in power and wealth can have. Sorta like the whole Brittany Spears struggle and how hard it was for her to get both legal and actual grips on her life.
I think Beau is literally struggling in a legal battle, with the desire to break free from his moms grips. But she has had such control over how he made his money, how he was portrayed to the world as a pharmaceutical celebrity. I think that rebellious part of Beau finally made a bid to break free from his mom legally, and the mega powerful Mom responded to the betrayal by literally using everything in her power and authority to "incriminate" him.
I think when he was told to stop incriminating himself someone who had known him for so long and seen his struggle was trying to reveal the behind the scenes plays being done to frame him as completely incapable. The mom can pull serious strings as the people she has helped all have deep trauma that required her pharmaceuticals to overcome, thus even the best intentioned people can be made to come undone and twisted into an enemy.
The powerless feeling of someone who has been made out to be crazy because they struggle with legitimate mental illness....to prove to the world you have a grip on reality, to have that weakness exploited...god so much powerful stuff.
This movie seriously feels like a bad trip
Omg! I've been waiting for you to cover this. Thanks so much !
You need to just watch the movie and you don't think too much about it. I completely adore it. I noticed though Elaine dies quiet differently in the directors cut. With a view of Beu's distended nuts.
This is one of the best films of the last 30 years, I think it’s maybe top 20 ever artistic movies. Phenomenal really.
23:00 “what he could be if he could just get over his own issues “ 😢 the epithet that’ll be on my grave stone
I would LOVE a follow up vid to this please! Def seems like there are a ton more themes to unpack here!
I SAW THIS MOVIE WITH MY MOM FOR MOTHER’s DAY 💀💀💀
The most freeing words my Therapist ever said to me were *“You know that you could marry the perfect man, have perfect children and a perfect house, job and life AND your mother Still wouldn’t be happy with you right?”* My stunned and timid yes helped me and all of my siblings to heal immensely. ❤️ You can’t live for them, since it will Never be enough. You have to break the cycle and live for you. 🫂
So much of this movie reminds me of reoccurring bad dreams I've had since a kid:
1. Running late for work/school while all these ridiculous things keep happening to you, preventing you from being where you need to be
2. Being naked out in public
3. Being in both 1st person view and 3rd person view at the same time (or seeing another version of yourself)
4. Having a spider on the loose, running around in the house
5. People and places suddenly morphing and changing randomly to someone/someplace else (or being in two places at one)
6. Crawling up into a tight space, and not being able to get back out
7. Needing a drink, but not being able to find water anywhere
This movie is basically what happens when you are born to a mother who has dominated most of the country through the selling of addictive drugs and now has massive influence farther than the reaches of any massive goliath today like Amazon or Google. The mother then uses that influence to influence everyone against you to torture you for having emotions an impairments brought upon by a drugged up life you probably had no choice in partaking in since you were a kid, and those common traits produced by a helicopter parent in their kids: fear, anxiety, introversion, etc.
i’ve been SO EXCITED for you to post this!!!
Seems like a perfect representation of what long-term mind games, damage and anxiety someone can suffer from having a narcissist parent.
To me, the presence of the mom's compamy, isnt literal, but symbolic. For his mother being so big a presence in his life.
😮 I would love to see a part 2 going into this movie, what a trip!
I love this movie so much. It perfectly shows how the worst case scenarios feel to me in my head
Remember kids, never take drugs if you don't know what they are. My most horrid experiences are with that kinda stuff happening
19:13 The part where her face changes in the scene while yelling at Beau freaks me the F out haha. Like the scene in The Prodigy where the boys face turns into the serial killers face!!
Finally! I was waiting for you to cover this. Ari Aster never fails to make his viewers traumatized with his films. Absolutely terrific!
I love this film! I like how it’s essentially an adventure film where everything that could go wrong, does go wrong. Regular adventures has the protagonist get into a bunch of trouble, but always finds a way to work in their favor. They always get lucky. Here he always gets bad luck throughout his entire journey. This is just scratching the surface of the film too, but if I were to explain it to a philistine, this would be the easiest explanation of it.
My sister was born with the umbilical cord around her throat and she had extremely bad anxiety. She has unhinged anxiety I.E. "there's a tooth growing in my throat". She didn't eat for a week because she swallowed gum and only drank soy sauce.
I always told my parents that because she was breech that it might've affected her ability to survive so she acted out. My parents blame her for their demise but I love my sister ! She is healthy and doing SO well! She is a paralegal but doesn't talk to my family.
I have a lot of respect to Ali Astor, he made the movie he wanted and told the story that he felt was necessary to say, loved this film
I am so happy you're covering this! Also perfect/odd timing, I literally just finished watching this about a half hour ago😂
Heck yeah an upload close from the last. I’m so happy. Good job man
Thank you for recapping this, I don’t think I could watch this due to my own anxiety - I am also afraid! So I thank you ❤
22:11 at some point, you think the head trauma this guy deals with would circle around and start making him smart like a handsome Squidward
I still have questions.
Did Beau actually die? If so, how?
Did he actually end up having sex? If so how did Elaine die?
What the note on the napkin mean?
Was that man in the woods actually his father?
Where had his father been all this time if he wasn’t dead?
I think youre overthinking. Take it as "this is what people with severe anxiety/near schizophrenia thinks will happen" every situation and scenario leading to the most catastrophic conclusion, and then the next.
6:30 the AirLiotto was such a great easter egg! Love the Corrina Corrina reference
Also tying into the water theme in this movie, Mona Wasserman (I think) translates into the surname meaning "water man" in German
"Wassermann" is the german word for the zodiac sign "Aqaurius".
I know that people keep on saying that this movie is like one giant anxiety-triggered nervous breakdown, but I agree so much. The catastrophizing, the worst case scenario seeming to be the most likely outcome everywhere, the idea that everyone inherently hates you or is out to harm you. Also, the feeling that you aren’t capable of doing anything successfully on your own, that you’re inherently a complete failure and that you will stay that way. Losing yourself in versions of reality you create in your head that will never actually happen. It’s genuinely really hard.
Is it bad that I perfectly understood this entire movie?
When he mentioned Beau "coming to some strange craggy island", I wouldn't have been that astonished had Father Jack materialised, shouting "Feck off!" at that point in the story (41:32)...
Just remembered it's 3 hours long as well.
Im a fan of Aster's work and even though I didn't get this movie and didn't really enjoy it, I can appreciate him at least trying something different. I compair this to Skinamerink , not in style but just trying to be different. But different doesn't automatically mean good because both of these were a chore to get through
Jesus. This movie is pure chaos. I am not even sure what to think about it.
I love this movie. It’s pedal to the metal the entire time.
I took an afternoon to watch this movie all the way through and when I tell you I was SO ANXIOUS!!
This movie kinda hits home weirdly enough
As soon as I saw this I came to RUclips to see if you covered this cause I was just right confused. It took a couple months but thank you. Thank you so much…
Joaquin should get an Oscar for this, at least a nomination.
Thank you for your service! Literally cannot imagine how much time and research went into this video ❤
I have an insane anxiety disorder, and this movie fr scared me with how much I related to him
real
OMG I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS FOR ALMOST A YEAR WOOOO 🎉
I worry about that Ari Aster...bless his heart 🤪 Awesome video!
Beau is afraid is one of the most abstract movies out there to the point where it wasn’t that good. You still wanna have some progression or some plot. I finally understand some of it but still 3 hours is a crazy runtime for this.
I kinda checked out eventually when I was watching it. It needs to be a tighter, shorter film, but it gets really carried away to the point of too many scenes IMHO.
Yeah, had to fast forward through the live theatre scenes. Just too long and boring
I enjoyed every second cause it was all so skillfully done, but it easily could have been 2 hour 15
Welcome to the Ari Aster school of filmmaking. Take a relatively simple topic like "dominant mother" and make it seems as complex an complicated as possible. Slap in some disconnected monster/gore scene for the trailer. Bloat it up 2,5 hours of runtime. Hide cryptic messages and visual cues in your movie so it seems like the movie is much deeper and more complex then it actually is. fail at the box office.