Now, don't get me wrong. This is a great movie. It emphasised all the different things I always think about. The meaningless of life, and its immense hardships being the main one. But when I tell people I'm a nihilist, and that life's hard for no reason. I'm seen as edgy, and pretentious. But when Charlie Kaufman does it. He's seen as a genius? Is it just because I'm not a Hollywood writer?
shareBecause Kaufman made a fantastic piece of art and you're just bothering people with your boring opinions.
My smile is stuck, I cannot go back to your frownland.
Seconded.
shareMy opinions on life are the EXACT SAME as Charlie Kaufman's. The exact same. Do you find his opinion's boring? No.
shareDo you find his opinion's boring?No apostrophe needed, KK. You got it right in the first sentence. Give it a quick edit before someone else notices.
>My opinions on life are the EXACT SAME as Charlie Kaufman's. The exact same.
Yes, but Kaufman didn't just blather out his opinions, he crafted them into a fantastic work of art. If you make a great work of art, people will care about your stupid opinions.
My smile is stuck, I cannot go back to your frownland.
One of the many differences between Charlie Kaufman and you is that Charlie Kaufman doesn't hate humanity. He likes to explore our insecurities and our wants and desires. You just blatantly said you hate humanity.
shareThat's just one difference. Charlie may not hate humanity, but he definitely feels most of human life is a miserable depressing chore.
shareI bet your life is miserable. That's why you aren't replying.
shareIt's a question of what you do with that opinion. If Anomalisa was Kauffman on screen saying that life is meaningless and it's all for *beep* then it would be tiresome, but by conveying that through art, it becomes meaningful.
"Why would you want to prove that all is for nothing?!"
I think I convey it quite beautifully through my tears when I rant during a drunk night out in London.
shareHey, I related to the ideas and emotions in this movie too. But the point isn't to confirm or justify your feelings of anxiety and alienation. It wants to illustrate that when we focus on such feelings, when we believe that we're not enough, the world will inevitably reflect that back to us. The problem is the lens through which we're perceiving the world, not the world itself. This idea is expressed quite clearly (I think anyway) in the closing images, when Lisa is driving with her friend in the car as she writes a letter to Michael. Her friend's face is animated in a completely new and human way, illustrating that a person whose heart is more open to connecting with the world (at least on some levels) is able to see the uniqueness and beauty that others will remain blind to. The majority of the film is a reflection of Michael's self-enforced blindness, if you will!
shareBut how do you get out of this depression?! The movie gives no answers. It just tells you how it is, and that's it. Are some people just destined to be miserable their whole life? I work in customer service, and I feel the exact same depression.
shareFirstly, most depression is the result of stupidly simple things such as failing to drink enough water or eat enough alkaline foods; or not getting enough daylight and exercise. On top of that, most of us are consuming a fackload of sugar, alcohol, tobacco and all sorts of rubbish that send our bodies and minds into decline. Beyond that, we're mostly dealing with beliefs and habits ingrained in our subconscious mind. Read articles online about reprogramming negative beliefs and effectively creating new habits. Keep an open mind, invite in some things you may ordinarily define as silly. They may help you out. So before we complain in any major way, we need to address these things, or at least take responsibility for them. We are all human beings capable of immense things, happiness included.
shareI work out loads, and I'm still depressed. I can't even find joy in women, and sex anyone. I see life as meaningless. I don't see the point. I can't act anymore just to try and be happy in a pointless world.
shareThere is not a lot to be happy about lately. I don't have any real answers, this is something I struggle with, myself. I don't believe happiness is a natural state for us, not to the degree that we want it anyway. The chances are that happiness is fleeting and trivial.. found in the smallest and most insignificant of details, for the smallest and most insignificant amount of time.
Trying to be happy is not as important as trying things that might make you happy. I imagine that the pleasure centres get fatigued with repeated stimulation of the same type. Trying as much as possible gives you the best chances of finding small amounts of happiness here and there. Obviously this is not something a person with untreated depression, feels like doing, though.