In fact, like all the films of the Coen brothers, Barton Fink only expresses one theme: the essence of life is absurd and ridiculous, and the perfect life only exists in our imagination.
In fact, we don't have to worry about which one in the movie is fantasy and which one is real, because maybe the Coen brothers don't know either, they just want to express a state, show a process, and the rest is not important.
1. The film first explains that Barton Fink is a playwright who pursues spiritual creation. He does not want to be influenced by society and life. This can also be obtained from the newspaper's review of his play: the people at the bottom also have great ideals, and they are willing to be struggle. This has laid a foreshadowing for the final absurdity: Dahan is the people at the bottom. He wanted to tell him his story, but was rejected, so it exposed the self-righteousness of Barton Fink at the beginning: he always thought he was looking for is the truth, and this becomes the greatest absurdity.
2. Coming to the hotel from Barton Funk implies that he will enter a secular trap. The waiter watching the elevator will only report the floor mechanically. When the elevator goes up, it means that the hero will start a new life. , that has never been lived, and it can also be seen as the process of Barton Fink going to heaven (maybe it is his heaven, because he will get a good treatment and a new life due to writing)
3. The whole film is It was carried out in a state of impetuousness. Due to the weather, even the walls began to sweat. The constantly falling off wall skin suggested the impetuous state of the whole world. Almost all the protagonists in the film were sweating profusely until the end of the film. The climax, the whole corridor burns up, and the world is on the verge of destruction. According to classical thermodynamics: the change in entropy can be caused by temperature. Entropy refers to the degree of chaos in the system. In this claustrophobic environment, According to the Coen brothers, our life is as unavoidable as entropy towards disorder and uncertainty. This awareness also runs through the Coen brothers' films (such as Schrödinger's cat in Serious Men), in the Coen brothers It seems that this is the essence of life
4. The wrestling between the hero and Dahan, the director used the first-person perspective to shoot Dahan's ghostly smile. Dahan's occupation is: insurance salesman, so this represents the seduction of the secular to Barton Funk. When Barton Funk walks away When I went up and got used to Dahan's body, Dahan threw him down with a big fall, which again represented the attitude of real life to people: first to seduce you, and then to damage you
5. Barton Funk in a hot room He is constantly being bitten by mosquitoes, which is to visualize the troubles of life, but others tell him that there are no mosquitoes in Los Angeles, so the audience will be very curious about how the pimples on his face come from, because we did hear it in the film. The sound of mosquitoes, that's where the Coen brothers' cunning comes in, throws us into chaos, and when you're watching his movies, life, like entropy, goes a little bit toward chaos and incomprehension.
6. When Barton Fink killed the mosquito, the woman around him suddenly died, which means that when you plan to eliminate a small trouble in your life, the big trouble in your life will often follow. It is uncontrollable.
7. When the elevator goes down, it means that the male protagonist is going to hell step by step. He also asked the elevator waiter: Do you believe in God? The waiter in the elevator should have believed it before, but what life gave him was only the existence of the body, so he said he had heard of it. This is also the characteristic of the Coen Brothers movie: If there is a savior, why not save us
8. Two policemen Being killed by the big man in the fire means that all order will eventually be destroyed.
9. The big man is actually a representative of real life and his true self.
He is sweating profusely (high entropy, which means impetuous and chaotic), pus in his ears (meaning dirty and sick), and pretending to be an insurance salesman (good at disguise) and finally when his true face is revealed by the police, he becomes the incarnation of truth, goodness and beauty again, he suits and wears shoes (low entropy, which means truth and peace), he will blast other people's heads (meaning innocence to others) Compromise and soulless hatred for others, read books since he killed the female secretary, his resentment against hypocrites because the female secretary writes soulless scripts for others), he will speak his true thoughts (he Barton Fink's denial, because Barton Fink initially thought that he should be close to the bottom people and reflect the most real life, but he was unwilling to listen to the big man telling his story and life)
10. He finally gave the head of the female secretary to the male protagonist, because he has a kind side in reality. He hopes that Barton Fink can use this gift as a mirror of his soul and recognize himself clearly, so the male protagonist has inspiration. , wrote what he thinks is deep in the soul
11. But real life cannot accept Barton Fink's works, the public needs works that are in line with daily life, people are tired of thinking and like pleasure and sensory stimulation, so Barton Fink Ke was expelled, and finally he came to the seaside, he finally saw the woman in the painting, saw her face, Barton Funk was no longer confused, no longer longing, at this time there was only peace and beauty.
12. Why did the bird in the sea fall down at the end? Because there was no bird in the painting of the hotel, Barton Fink asked it to disappear, and it fell right away. Barton Fink finally walked into his soul and got his redemption.
It was written in a hurry, without any modification or polish in wording, just wanted to share it with you, I hope you will understand.
View more about Barton Fink reviews
