“You can say anything, you can do anything, but you can’t fake a thought.” 

‘I’m Thinking of Ending Things’ is a Netflix original movie based on a book with the same name by Iain Reid. The director, Charlie Kaufman who is also the producer and the screenwriter of this movie, is known to make movies that require most viewers to watch them for more than once in order to get the plot. How did I know? Well, this was not my first Kaufman movie that I’ve watched so I do not expect myself to get the plot immediately after watching it. 

Set in winter, the story begins with a few shots of a cozy house with a beautiful interior and an old man can be seen looking out the window while a woman was narrating the story. “I’m thinking of ending things,” the young woman then said to herself, but not out loud when she’s in the car with her boyfriend before they begin their trip to meet her boyfriend’s parents on a rural farm. Though the narrator kept emphasizing how her relationship with her boyfriend was great, I was left wondering at first why she would want to end it. 

On their way to meet Jake’s parents, the young couple talked about their interests and also kept themselves updated with each other’s lives. Though this particular part may seem a little boring because of the long-winded conversation, but those ten minutes contain important details for you to understand the movie during your first watch. Despite being only minor details, they’re like puzzle pieces from the sides; You do not know what the full picture is going to be like but when you build up the sides first you will know where the middle puzzle pieces go when you reach the end of the movie because that’s how the storyline works. (SPOILER ALERT!) 

In between the scenes that tell the story of the young couple when they were on the road, you would have recognised the scenes with a mysterious old man from the start of the movie, a janitor in a school. I was extremely confused and had so many questions that I want to clarify- what is the connection between the young couple and the janitor? The moment when the young couple reached Jake’s parents’ house, things still do not make sense as I recognised the interior of the house shown at the beginning of the movie is the same as the old man’s house. 

Things start to get more confusing like Jake’s parents went from looking normal and healthy in their fifties to Jake’s father looking old and having dementia out of a sudden while Jake’s mom on the other hand became really sick. As someone who’s not very good at analysing things, I missed out a lot of hints about who Jake was. Turns out, he was actually the younger version of the old man. 

Jake met the young woman in a bar when he was younger, he was afraid to ask her out so now when he’s older, he fantasized about how his life would be like if he really did ask her out. That explains why the moment when Jake’s mother met the young woman, she kept saying that Jake had finally found someone — because Jake never found anyone from the start. He’s just a lonely janitor in a school filled with students that are young and in love, dreaming the life he wanted but could never have. Of course he could fantasize about how his dream girl can be like but he also knows that he could not do anything about the depressing reality and he’s tired of being alone so he decided to take his own life. 

I liked how this movie used metaphors and tiny clues to tell the story instead of the usual straightforward storytelling like any other movies. In general, I really liked this movie. Its cinematography was aesthetically pleasing and it fits the melancholy melody that played throughout the whole movie. Even if you get the plot during your first watch, it’s still a rewatchable film as it makes you feel emotional every time when you watch it. Though do be prepared to make yourself think about life while lying on your bed, staring at the ceiling and never being able to sleep for the whole night after watching this film!