Symbols

Wow, movie is filled with so many classic symbols. Thankfully, they were not dwelt on too much which would have diverted the story. Instead, many symbols about life.

A few of the symbols are:

1) Water represents rebirth. Water cleans the soul. Fish symbolize rebirth because of the water. The mother archetype is dark, cold, and wet. Some rites of passage require going into a cold, dark cave, and traveling by water at night. This symbol is replete through the movie.

Specifically, the entire experience is inside a cave, each major scene transitions via water, and the rebirth (for all of them) happens inside a dark ball. They all emerge reborn.

2) The swallowing of gods is two fold. This swallowing is not devouring, it is absorbing. It represents a person in mid life who must choose whether to fight or accept the life-cycle. Accepting would be a join. Absorption means one surrenders to the other.

Another aspect here is the world soul, normally represented inside (or laid over) a god's torso. This was done beautifully when they accepted they had a job to do and he swallowed them. They now existed in his stomach as he returned to the vita aqua and delivered them to their purpose.

3) The all seeing eye represents god. Seen easily on the back of a $1 bill, or in Roger Corman's X: The Man with the X-Ray Eyes, amongst many others.

Not only did the god show up with eyes, when he had to make a sacrifice after finding a body for her soul, he gave up an eye. Traditionally, people sacrifice the eye. Losing eyesight terrifies people more than anything else.

I don't know if the story has a goal. It's seems to be more of a journey. The journey itself is the experience. In a sense, he had to try and fail in order to accept his own life. Perhaps even realize he was willing to give up another person's life just to satisfy his desires. Then a fight, then he accepts death. Both of his wife, and perhaps of himself. She too had to see death, over and over, even quasi-dying herself, in order to appreciate the life that she already had. Finally, the boy had to fight for everybody until he found it was his own values that he needed to fight for. He needed to be somebody, and not someone else's lackey. He found himself and got confirmation from her that _finally_ he wasn't his brother. He indeed was someone else. Everyone did the opposite of what they really in order to appreciate what they already had.

4) Ground refers to the unconscious so above ground is consciousness. This is played out by everyone underground accepting life and death as is, but the topsiders wanting to take control of it. This only leaves destruction in its waste. Further, getting underground requires the lapis (philosophorum) to unlock the gates to get there. A nice touch of alchemy.

On top of that, the male/female types play in very well. usually, males represent consciousness and females unconsciousness. Under ground, the leader is a women protected by other women who send boys to do their dirty work. Above ground, the nice characters are all female. Indeed, the nice female teacher was replaced with the (evil) male teacher, which caused the entire disruption.

Sorry for rambling. I just needed to say something about this absolutely beautiful film.