Writer/director Charlie Kaufman has always had a special way around the human psyche, as evidenced in films like Being John Malkovich and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. But his latest movie, I’m Thinking of Ending Things feels like another leap forward in world of WTF, even when compared to Kaufman’s typically offbeat sensibilities. You’ll see what we mean when you watch the trailer for this Netflix original film below:
Based on author Iain Reid’s book of the same name, I’m Thinking of Ending Things sees its protagonist (Wild Rose’s Jessie Buckley) thinking about ending her relationship with her boyfriend, Jake (Jesse Plemons.) But even with those thoughts in mind, she’s up for a road trip to meet the parents (Toni Collette & David Thewlis) in what looks to be the dead of winter. And that’s where the weirdness starts, as this particular family gathering turns into some rather wild existential pondering. What started as a relationship drama looks to turn into a dreadful tale of personal peril, as only Charlie Kaufman could deliver.
Maybe it’s the fact that I’m Thinking of Ending Things seems to have a poor dog in its midst, who always seems to be shaking something off for an unnerving amount of time. Or maybe it’s the fact that while Toni Collette’s Mother and David Thewlis’ Father are uber friendly, they seem a bit too friendly. Whatever the case, the dread that seems to fill Jessie Buckley and the simmering anger seen on the usually happy-go-lucky face of Jesse Plemons turn things into a twisty maze of feelings pretty quickly.
Oh, and there’s totally creepy aging effects, a meditation on how time wears us all down in body and spirit, and some musical style dancing that has us questioning the outcome of Charlie Kaufman’s latest outing. I’m Thinking of Ending Things certainly has us thinking; and our thoughts are that this is a movie we’re going to be talking about long after the credits start to roll.Not to mention, Toni Collette looks like she could go full Hereditary at any moment in this one, and that’s always a cause to celebrate.
Then again, this is Charlie Kaufman we’re talking about here. If there’s two things that his skill set has been able to do, in any genre he tackles, it’s make us think about the human condition and feel more than a little uncomfortable about what we come up with. The only real difference with I’m Thinking of Ending Things, is that it looks like this particular exercise is going to take a detour into the world of slow burning horror and confusion. Which, ultimately, makes this Netflix original a movie that couldn’t have come to us at a more appropriate time, to be sure. We’ll see how deep I’m Thinking of Ending Thingscuts into our souls when it debuts on Netflix, on September 4th. Though if you want to prime your mind for some of the weirdness ahead, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is currently available in their library as well.
