MovieChat Forums > Solaris (2002) Discussion > My interpretation of the ending

My interpretation of the ending

posted 11 years ago by beavertoof
18 replies | jump to latest

I looked thru part of the thread that already exists about the ending, but it is 5 pages long and I ran out of patience trying to read thru them all to see if anyone's matches what I got from the film.

I really loved this film besides what I felt was a miscast with Jeremy Davis as Snow.

It seemed to me that at the end, Chris chooses to not go back to earth, yet we see a scene of him clearly back on earth, along with a scene where he notices he has no scar on his finger, so therefore is he a copy? Then Rheya shows up for a "happy ending".

This seems contradictory since they also show a scene of the inside of the escape ship, and clearly he, nor a copy of him is anywhere to be seen. -And- we see the scene of him left at the Solaris space station as it gets engulfed by Solaris.

So... what I got from that is the scene of him back on earth at the end was something like an alternate reality that Solaris creates for him when he chooses to stay at the space station and he kind of "merges" with Solaris itself.

Anyone else thinking along these lines?

[–] AfroGeek 10 years ago

Just rewatched this gem. I'm starting to feel that maybe there *was* a duplicate him sent back in much the same way the duplicate Snow appeared. When we get the "flashback" of him on earth, he talks about having to relearn and mimick human gestures.

Something else that bugs me is the self-awareness of the Copies. I think the poem's last line "death has no dominion" might mean the alien is so advanced that they have the ability to "resurrect" souls. And, Viola Davis uses that exact word with emphasis. Even though McElhone talks like she's a creation, she's IMO not just a figment of Clooney's memory. She really is her as if she's been resurrected in an alien golem.

I think the alien was simply trying to give each person what they wanted in some kind of friendly gesture by reading their thoughts. I just watched this last night and a feel like I need to watch it again. The scene after McElhone talks Clooney into sleep and his subsequent dream is also hard to figure out.

Now, why Snow didn't have a Visitor and only a copy of himself that I can't understand. Did he simply not have anyone he loved as much to stand out to the aliens? Just too confused. I saw this maybe 10 years ago and on rewatching I feel like I have more questions this time around!

---
Call them ISIL. Isis is an overloaded term that has many other legitimate uses.

[–] MercurialAquarian 10 years ago

"Even though McElhone talks like she's a creation, she's IMO not just a figment of Clooney's memory. She really is her as if she's been resurrected in an alien golem."

Yes yes. While Solaris can create a human replicant from a human memory, combined with whatever molecular theory Snow had attempted to propose, it cannot furnish a human soul. Rhea, who bemoans her lack of human wholeness, lacks a soul; she is not so much resurrected or recreated as she is created incompletely. As a sentient alien entity, Solaris is indeed a unique creator (of alien golems), just not a divine creator.

Objection, your Honor. You can't preface your second point with first of all.

[–] kshiarella 9 years ago

Solaris is able create physical, living and spiritual manifestations of the human subconscious Thus Rheya is created from Chris's subconscious (twice).

The Solaris expansion destroys the ship and Chris. The Solaris created Rheya has no memory of Chris cutting his finger, which is our clue that the Chris at the end of the movie is the Solaris creation of Chris from the Solaris created Rheya's subconscious.

[–] ViciousHowl 9 years ago

Yeah if you've seen the original it's endings are both the same except the original ending is more vague

The ending to this one kinda throws it into your face so its not really anything to not get from watching the remake.

I really loved the ending to the original, so I felt like the remake ending was kind of a let down and really dragged out for too long.

If it ended when the his cut healed up somewhere around there I think it would have been a perfect ending.

However I enjoyed the movie for what it was, normally the remakes just butchers the original but Soderbergh did a really good job.

7/10.

[–] cold2005 8 years ago

I actually just watched the original recently, and both pretty much have the same ending really...
In the original they make a comment near the end of the film that they are seeing land formations (islands) appearing on the ocean surface of Solaris. At the very end of the film he is back with his family on Earth, then zoom out to see the house is just on a small island floating and manifested on the ocean surface of the planet.
I take the ending of the remake very similarly, as the ship crashes into the planet, Chris dies. The scenes of him back in his house, the instant-healed cut on his finger, and Rhea being there again means the exact same thing has happened in this film's ending too. They're in their manifested house "living" out their lives on or within Solaris. As much grief as the remake gets, I love it more than the original. Perhaps its because I saw it before the original, but the 1972 version actually spelled things out to me much more clearly and in a steady fashion. There was no confusion about what the ending may have meant, at least not to me. Again, it could be because I had already seen the remake beforehand and knew more of what was happening.

What actually blew my mind more was the first time I watched the 2002 film, and not until having watched it again just now (and by the end of the film) did I realize who the kid on the station was. I should have realized it, its one of those things they probably meant to be obvious, but seeing his big blue eyes and realizing it reminded me of Rhea's, it finally hit me that he was supposed to be the kid they should have had. That was one of those Oh Sh!t moments for me. Seriously wow. Goosebumps.
Did everyone else get that the first time they watched it? How is this movie rated so low?? Its criminal.

[–] walkerus 8 years ago

I think Chris realised he was a 'Mirror' and decided not to go back to Earth for obvious reasons. Gordon would get back to Earth with quite a story, whether she will be believed or not is anyone's guess (I wouldn't believe her for starters).

I was a little disappointed by the ending for Chris, we never find out just where or when he finally ends-up or whether it is just his mind playing games before he evaporates on Solaris.