Synecdoche, New York

This one never gets old and even better: it changes its meaning every time depending on whatever's been going on in your own life lately.

The best film of the 2000's (not kidding) will probably never find an audience beyond the arthouse crowd because everyone else was busy obsessing about The Dark Knight or some shit at the time.

Even a lot of of critics needed a few more years to get the memo. You won't even find this one in a whole lot of "best of 2000's" lists either. Not that it would mean a lot anyway - these lists aren't made up to recommend you great movies. They rather aim at generating ad revenue by way of evoking a sense of nostalgia in most readers. You can't do that with movies they haven't seen.

Yeah, screw that and seriously, if you didn't get the chance back then, do yourself a favor and give this one a try now.

Gotta give a trigger warning for profound existential dread though. If you require your movies to be nice and uplifting, this one's not for you. Better watch Avatar or some sh** instead so you don't run the risk of actually feeling something.

This is a great movie!

It's easy to see why Ebert had this on his all-time list. What an ambitious film! The last two minutes alone are worth the price of admission. The author/director is the same guy that wrote Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Being John Malkovish. This film was similar to those films and far more ambitious.

Everyone knows I like existential dread in my coffee, but "Synecdoche, New York" was quite an exhausting experience. The film starts with a seemingly light tone, leaning on surreal humor, but as it unfolds, it grows increasingly bitter, meandering for too long without a clear direction. However, with each subsequent viewing, the dense layers of subtext and foreshadowing reveal themselves, and that's when you grasp the true essence of this cinematic masterpiece. What initially appears as your usual character study gradually morphs into a universal portrayal of a condition that all living beings must grapple with. That is why we’re all Caden, Adele, Ellen, etc.

The film delves into profound reflections on the profound impacts of choice and failure within our limited lifespan, all while blurring the boundaries of identity and gender. It also examines the intricate interdependence between art and artist, each constantly mirroring and controlling the other. These themes offer an abundance of opportunities for open-ended interpretations to ruminate upon for days after each viewing. A cinematic rabbit hole that invites you to ponder the human condition and the enigmatic relationship between life and art, leaving you with an existential aftertaste that is hard to shake off.

That's what's so refreshing...

Knowing that you don't know is the first and the most essential step to knowing, ya know?

https://boxd.it/2yOewH

Powerful and strange from the king of nonlinearity. I need to watch it again but I don't know if I can ever face it.

Amazing movie, something sad and a powerful message of loneliness. By the way, an incredible cast.

> "There are a million little strings attached to every choice you make. You can destroy your life every time you choose. But maybe you won't know for 20 years... and you may never, ever trace it to its source. And you only get one chance to play it out."

> "And even though the world goes on for eons and eons... you are only here for a fraction of a fraction of a second. Most of your time is spent being dead or not yet born. But while alive, you wait in vain... wasting years for a phone call or a letter or a look... from someone or something to make it all right. And it never comes, or it seems to, but it doesn't really. So you spend your time in vague regret... or vaguer hope that something good will come along."

---
Fun fact: Caden Cotard was named after Cotard's Syndrome, which is a rare mental disorder characterized by the delusional belief of oneself being already dead or putrefying, and it usually begins with psychotic depression and hypochondria.

Depressing enough to make you think for days.Deep dialogues and even if i didnt get everything i liked in any way.

Wow, great movie highlighting the themes of life and death and the avoidance of life. Many themes, complicated but wonderful at the same time