MovieChat Forums > The Reconstruction of William Zero (2015) Discussion > "Crawl inside it and make it a new home"

"Crawl inside it and make it a new home"


As a movie about a man who loses his child, this movie was poignant enough. I liked how in the end, William the First seemed to realize that he was misguided in trying to create a new version of himself to take over, to create a person to "crawl inside" his life and "make it a new home," like the sea creature.

But I can't help finding it distasteful how he manipulated his wife into thinking there was no discontinuity. True, she asked if they could just start over. But it's manipulative to have multiple clones talking to her, and sleeping with her, pretending they are all the same guy. William's experiences cloning himself majorly impacted him, but he won't tell her about it. Instead keeping secrets.

William even admitted that the clones weren't just like him--he tried to make them "hear better and see better." At least the original guy went off with her at the end, but the latest clone was fully prepared to restart his life with her (only to die shortly after, as we learn is his fate, as the clone-of-a-clone). Yet this husband wouldn't have the memories the wife made with the latest clone, which helped convince her to get back together with him.

Anyway, it just seems William wasn't treating his wife with respect, as an autonomous human being--more like his property that he could do with as he pleased, much like his clones, without giving her the whole story. William claimed in a voiceover that "he did it all for her," but lying is never a good foundation for helping your spouse--plus, what he did was more selfish than anything, designed to lessen his own guilt.

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Gentlemen, you can't fight in here! This is the War Room!"--Pres. Merkin Muffley

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