TRIGGER WARNING: The following contains references to suicide.
The Big Picture
- Charlie Kaufman's film I'm Thinking of Ending Things is a bizarre and surreal adaptation of Iain Reid's novel, showcasing Kaufman's unique storytelling style.
- The film revolves around Jake and his girlfriend Lucy as they take a road trip to visit Jake's parents, but things take a morbid turn as the evening unfolds.
- Jake's mental state, depression, and contemplation of suicide are central themes in the film, portrayed through the characters of Lucy and the elderly janitor.
Only someone as sly and subversive as Charlie Kaufman could pull off an adaptation of Iain Reid’s surrealist horror novel I’m Thinking of Ending Things. Charlie Kaufman is one of the most idiosyncratic storytellers working in Hollywood today. Kaufman has an aptitude for telling stories that are both egregiously silly and deeply tragic. While Kaufman’s screenwriting credits on Adaptation and Being John Malkovich were certainly strange, his solo directorial films like I'm Thinking of Ending Things are even more bizarre.
I'm Thinking of Ending Things
R
This psychological thriller follows a young woman on a road trip to meet her boyfriend's parents at their secluded farm. As a snowstorm intensifies outside, the visit becomes increasingly unsettling, revealing that nothing is as it seems. The film intricately explores themes of identity, time, and memory through surreal storytelling.
- Release Date
- September 4, 2020
- Director
- Charlie Kaufman
- Cast
- Jesse Plemons , Jessie Buckley , Toni Collette
- Runtime
- 134 minutes
- Main Genre
- Drama
What Is 'I'm Thinking of Ending Things' About?
I’m Thinking of Ending Things follows the young man Jake (Jesse Plemons) and his girlfriend Lucy (Jessie Buckley) as they take a road trip to see his parents over Thanksgiving. Their conversations begin to feel morbid when Lucy recites a disturbing poem about her sense of depression. The evening gets even more bizarre when Jake’s mother (Toni Collette) and father (David Thewlis) begin changing forms and starting erratic conversations. Simultaneously, the footage is intercut with an elderly janitor who is cleaning up a school.
I’m Thinking of Ending Things can be overwhelming on a first watch; there are overt references and allusions to A Beautiful Mind, A Woman Under The Influence, Oklahoma!, the works of William Wordsmith, the film criticism of Pauline Kael, and even “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.” However, the only piece of literature you really need to understand the film’s message is Reid’s original novel. While Reid’s novel is more explicit in its twist ending, the interviews that Kaufman and the film’s cast have given following its 2020 Netflix release suggest that it’s not quite as clear.
What's Going On in Jake’s Mind Throughout 'I'm Thinking of Ending Things'?
While I'm Thinking of Ending Things is told from Lucy's perspective, she is simply a Tyler Durden-esque extension of Jake. As Jake reveals in his conversation with his parents, he considered approaching a girl at a trivia night event and asking her out. While the real Jake never actually approached this young woman, the film is an extension of a fantasy in which he did. Jake is trying to imagine what his perfect life with this girl (whose name keeps changing because he can’t decide on one) would look like; he’s unsure when he wants to introduce her to his parents, which explains why they keep changing ages.
To take things one step further, Jake is actually the same elderly janitor that we see interspersed throughout the story. This older man is now reflecting on the mistakes of his youth as he contemplates the end of his life. Based on Jake’s morbid conversations with his girlfriend, he seems to be contemplating suicide due to his depression. At the end of the film, Jake’s car disappears from the school parking lot, leaving only the janitor’s truck. We see the janitor’s truck covered in snow and eventually hear the sounds of an approaching vehicle and snow being scraped. This would imply that the janitor’s truck was left in the parking lot after he ended his life over the school’s Thanksgiving break.
Is Lucy Real in 'I'm Thinking of Ending Things'?
While Reid’s novel makes it explicitly clear that “Lucy” is not real, Kaufman made the gamble of giving her agency. In an interview with Indiewire, Kaufman revealed that “she is a device, but I wanted her to be able to separate herself from that.” I’m Thinking of Ending Things questions whether a fantasy can exist in its own right, as Jake has imagined an extensive backstory for his idealized girlfriend. While she may be based off of the girl he was too afraid to approach at the trivia night event, it’s possible that she is an amalgamation of the various women he’s been attracted to throughout his life (which would explain why her name keeps changing).
Kaufman also revealed that he “really liked the idea that even within his fantasy, he cannot have what he wants.” Since Jake is being fickle and keeps changing his mind, there are sudden jumps in time and place. The conversations he has with his girlfriend are often cut off, as if Jake is arguing with himself. It’s also possible that since these are the reflections of an older man, he does not have a firm grasp on his memory.
The literary, musical, and cinematic allusions in I’m Thinking of Ending Things can be explained by a scene in Jake’s bedroom; when he’s showing his childhood room to his girlfriend, we catch a collection of movies, poems, stories, and books, including Pauline Kael’s 1996 essay collection For Keeps: 30 Years at the Movies. Lucy begins repeating some of Kael’s words and mannerisms, specifically her infamously scathing review of John Cassavette’s A Woman Under The Influence. Jake also talks about David Foster Wallace’s essay from “A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again,” which contributes to the sense of doom, as Wallace himself died by suicide in 2008.
It’s also revealed in Jake’s conversations in the car that he is a fan of musicals. We see allusions to what is likely one of his favorites when he stands before the stage and delivers a rendition of “Lonely Home” from Oklahoma! It’s a fitting selection; the song itself is about the romantic longing of a man, and the musical itself conforms to very regressive gender roles. Jake’s musical fantasy continues in the stunning fantasy dance number where a younger janitor dances with a woman representing his girlfriend.
As for the animated talking pig, this appears to be connected to the farmland that Jake was showing his girlfriend earlier in the film; the memory of his childhood has now become distorted and near-death. The teenage girls working at the ice cream parlor seem to gaggle and whisper about Jake, suggesting that they are also an amalgamation of the various cashiers Jake has talked to over the years.
How Does 'I'm Thinking About Ending Things' Reference 'A Beautiful Mind'?
The humorous cut to credits after an older Jake stands before the crowd and accepts a Nobel Peace Prize is a replication of the ending scene of A Beautiful Mind with John Nash (Russell Crowe). Similar to A Beautiful Mind, both Jake and the audience members are wearing not very convincing old-age makeup effects. A Beautiful Mind is often criticized for being a manipulative, cheesy Hollywood production that feels like “Oscar bait,” which likely would have appealed to someone like Jake. It’s also a film that is about schizophrenia, where the central character imagines having interactions with people that aren’t there.
I’m Thinking of Ending Things is a great film to analyze, but it doesn’t just rely on its massive twist. It’s a deeply tragic film that has empathy for its titular character, while also showing the faults within his thinking. As far as surrealist films about mental illness go, I’m Thinking of Ending Things weaves the line between being unnerving and emotional.
I'm Thinking of Ending Things is available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.
