My interpretation - All Is Lost (2013) Discussion

[–] Mistah-J 10 years ago

No hand of god or any of the superficial stuff, in my opinion.
Hallucination would be the furthest thing I'd go.

But I believe the ending is pretty straight forward that he got rescued.
The only counter element would be, how did small boat end up that far in the ocean. Well it was probably dispatched by the bigger boat so that explains how the hand reached him.

He found one last push of hope when he saw the boat coming and it's probably because of the adrenaline rush rather than hand of god.

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[–] remifontainemoi 10 years ago

The hand at the end must have been Jesus.

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[–] janmarpro 10 years ago

My thoughts exactly!

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[–] droche-3 10 years ago

He was rescued by a CGI tiger and Wilson (a talking volleyball).

"When you throw dirt, you lose ground" --old proverb

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[–] bennyraldak 10 years ago

It's very clear, pure and strong. The film is about a sinful man 'preparing' himself for death. Yes, on the one hand we see him do everything to survive, but that's just surface context. In essence, he is purifying and redeeming himself. It's a story about a sinner (that's what the opening monologue is all about) who finally repents, and 'saves' himself. When "all is lost" and he's alone in the water ("except for SOUL and body", like he says) he comprehends that he is clean and ready. He lets go. He dies, in peace. Redeemed. He is 'saved' and accepted by God, who lends him his hand. Fade to white (afterlife). Music starts: AMEN!!!!

Clear, and beautiful. NO ambiguity, just poetic filmmaking.

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[–] auctionman99 10 years ago

I listened to the director's commentary and he said the ending is left to the viewer to interpret.

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[–] Mary444 10 years ago

Thank you Benny. I streamed All Is Lost last night, without reading any reviews or knowing anything about the film. Your interpretation succinctly coveys how I felt at the end of the movie. I think it was a movie about an imperfect man dying - whether on a boat, or with a terminal illness. Fighting to stay alive against all odds, thinking about past sins, repenting, and accepting the hand of God. I sure saw a lot of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner in this movie! This imperfect man's journey was comprised of sin; punishment; redemption; and finally salvation. Oh gosh this is one of the most-beautiful movies ever and I'm not religious. Absolutely loved it!

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[–] RFlint00 9 years ago

100% agree. I thought the point was very evident and your summary is right on the money. I don't believe in or get excited about such things, but no doubt the concepts of redemption and salvation are clearly there. The juxtaposition of the fiery ring and the searching light in the darkness of the final scene really, unmistakably, drove the idea home. As does the fade to white. It was well done.

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[–] DinosaurAct86 10 years ago

Even if Our Man does not physically die in the end of the film, his attachment to the material world does, along with the last remnants of his blazing raft. All is lost, but he is free.

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[–] thomas196x2000 10 years ago

Ridiculous. There was a boat in the distance. He sees the boat and the searchlight on the boat. He swims to it and a guy helps him up.

Geez.

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[–] laserwiz77 10 years ago

I guess it depends on the "depths of the waters" you dwell

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[–] janmarpro 10 years ago

Well your entitled to your opinion!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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[–] thomas196x2000 10 years ago

Ok, ok, let's be clear then on what this movie was REALLY about.

There was no sailing voyage.

Redford has had a heart attack on the tennis court, and is thinking about the sailboat he almost bought last year. As he lay dying on the court and looking up at the sun, he imagines himself on the very boat. Events go from bad to worse as he slowly dies, until the sunlight overwhelms him. Don't you see it? The burning raft is the burning sun at the end!

So see, he never sailed at all. That is why the cruise ship and the other ship never saw him, they weren't there. It was all his fleeting thoughts. The hand reaching down was the priest who lived next door touching him as he gave him his last rites.

I don't know how any of you people missed that, it was all quite clear.

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[–] DinosaurAct86 10 years ago

My, my, a bit sarcastic, are we?

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[–] cyokel 10 years ago

I TOO SENSED THE MOVIE NEVER HAPPENED. I ALSO BELIEVE I NEVER SAW IT AND HAD DREAMED THAT I HAD SEEN IT, WHICH IS WHAT I BELIEVE REALLY HAPPENED. IT WAS THE HAND OF JESUS CHRIST AND GODS BRAIN THAT IMAGINED, FOR ME, THE MOVIE, SEEN THROUGH THE CHANNELS OF ROBERT REDFORD AS MY MEMORY SERVES ME OF HIM AS AN ACTOR. I ALSO AGREE THAT GOD SENT ROBERT REDFORD TO EARTH TO THINK, THROUGH THE CHANNELS OF JESUS CHRIST AND GODS BRAIN EYEBALL THAT I WOULD INTERPRET THE SPIRITUALITY OF DYING WHILE PLAYING TENNIS, SOMETHING THAT AFFECTS THE WORLD BUT WHICH NOBODY TALKS ABOUT BECAUSE SATAN HAS PULLED THE WOOL OVER OUR EYES. GOD BLESS RONALD REGEAN.

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[–] 10 years ago

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[–] mrbobbyh 10 years ago

I don't think it was that at all (and I'm saying that as a Christian). I think that quite literally he was physically saved from dying at the end. The light shining down on him was indeed a search light. It was shown. If it were something like an all-encompassing white light or something with an ethereal quality to it, then yes, I would argue that he died and was passing into the filmmaker's interpretation of heaven/the afterlife/etc. But no, "our man" did indeed survive his ordeal.

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[–] RFlint00 9 years ago

But there was an all-encompassing white light at the very end as he's pulled from the darkness. That, coupled with his sorrowful attitude earlier on, the shedding of all material things and the imagery at the very end with the white search light right next to the burning ring of fire in the darkness, seemed very clear.

Obviously the movie does not explicitly say what it's intentions are, although I'd argue they're rather evident, so I guess it is open to interpretation. Interestingly, I do not believe in anything supernatural and this is what I took away from it. It's funny how we saw two different things.

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