The Fountain: a fantasy or science fiction?

[Tiffany Kysis Tackett]

The Fountain (2006), directed by Darren Aronofsky, starring Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz, is by far my favorite film, which I won't go into terribly here, but I have always wondered, would it fall under fantasy, sci-fi, or both?

The film is told in three parts, one in the "present" with Doctor Tommy Creo working in an experimental lab trying to find the cure for cancer, and his wife Izzy, struggling with cancer.  Another is the book Izzy is writing, called "The Fountain", about the conquistador Thomas Creo going on a mission for Spain and Queen Isabel to find the tree of life.  The third is following Tom Creo in a bubble space ship with the dying tree of life, trying to get it to Xibalba before it's too late.

While the film brushes on science in the parts with Doctor Creo, the space ship scenes do nothing to explain how the space ship works, how life has been extended so far, etc, so at times it feels like it could be soft sci-fi.  However, when you add in the book, it adds a serious splash of fantasy.

What do you guys think?

[Sharpy]

M8 I have'nt seen this, but I must say I am intrigued. The wife and I watch a lot of films and I am suprised I have'nt seen this. Im going to go look it up on IMDB {if you don't know this site it is a must for any movie trivia past,present and upcoming, you want to know} and if I like the look of it will order.


Ok looked this up and Im ordering today, if I can find somewhere that has it in stock.

[kevinjamesbreaux]

Sci-Fi is my vote... but really who cares... MAN that movie rocks! Love it!



Kevin James Breaux
www.kevinbreaux.com

[thedoctor]

I had never even heard of this one either. Sounds brilliant though. How did this one slip past me! Anyway, it is on Netflix and available to stream, so I will hopefully watch it within the next few days. I will let you know what I think.

[missoularedhead]

I have to admit that I didn't much care for it.  It was beautiful, but there was something about it that just didn't work for me.

[The Mad Hatter]

The Fountain (2006), directed by Darren Aronofsky, starring Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz, is by far my favorite film, which I won't go into terribly here, but I have always wondered, would it fall under fantasy, sci-fi, or both?

The film is told in three parts, one in the "present" with Doctor Tommy Creo working in an experimental lab trying to find the cure for cancer, and his wife Izzy, struggling with cancer.  Another is the book Izzy is writing, called "The Fountain", about the conquistador Thomas Creo going on a mission for Spain and Queen Isabel to find the tree of life.  The third is following Tom Creo in a bubble space ship with the dying tree of life, trying to get it to Xibalba before it's too late.

While the film brushes on science in the parts with Doctor Creo, the space ship scenes do nothing to explain how the space ship works, how life has been extended so far, etc, so at times it feels like it could be soft sci-fi.  However, when you add in the book, it adds a serious splash of fantasy.

What do you guys think?

Rather than answer you, I'm going to ask a couple of questions:

• Why do you need to know how the space ship works for it to be Science Fiction?
• The fantasy elements are in a book being written by a character - if a life of Tolkien included excerpts of LOTR would it be fantasy?

Now think about it. Is it Science Fiction or Fantasy?

Wayne aka The Mad Hatter

[Tiffany Kysis Tackett]

Hmmm.... while your questions make it seem like it would be solely science fiction, I am still not sold.  Perhaps, though, it would be.  Normally I view fountain of youth sort of deals, like the tree, to be in the fantasy realm, though the concentration on science in the 2000 part and the 2500 part do lean it towards sci-fi.

*shrug* Perhaps it is mainly sci-fi.  However, the parts of the book are a big enough story in and of themselves that it does insert a lot of the element of "fantasy", because it is not like inserting parts of Lord of the Rings into Tolkien's biography and calling it fantasy.  The book is a living and breathing part of the story, with characters that seem alive to Tommy, and he has to finish the story of their fantastical realm.