Movie symbolism explained (SPOILERS)
MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED. :-)
This movie received a lot of negative criticism, that is wholly unwarranted. It is a masterpiece, and I think it flew over the heads of many viewers. So, I'm going to explain the symbolism in the movie, for those who didn't get it, and just so I can start to appreciate it better myself. And, once again, my husband helped me understand this movie. 'Cause I'm a slowpoke... lol.
So... the story is essentially a dream, in this case a nightmarish one. It has the logic of a dream. I have not figured out how dreams work, but there is an underlying method to the madness. It can also be seen as purgatory, that period before getting into Heaven, where we have to find inner peace and self-awareness. It is a time to take stock of our past lives and create a vision/ schemata for our future (in Heaven). The story is also a hallucination from start to finish. Jacob is on a trip - a journey - induced by his desire to get well.
On to the important symbolism:
1) the spiral tattoo on Jacob/ = spiral dynamics (which is the theory posited by Clare W. Graves, that our consciousness needs to ascend a stairway (read: ladder) of sorts to get to Heaven and become one with God. We have to metaphorically climb up to reach God and unite our perspective with His. These aren't Clare's exact words. I'm just trying to capture the gist of the spiral symbolism.
2) demonic entities = Demons are angels in disguise. They are getting Jacob to confront his past and make peace with his former choices and decisions. Once Jacob's old self dies, he can be taken through the tunnel by the old lady, who was one of God's angels all along.
3) "The Ladder" - This is the drug that the war veterans take to erase their memories. But the drug has the side effect of making one hyper-focused, self-conscious and paranoid. BUT, this is not a bad thing. The drug leads them to confront themselves and their histories and brings them to death.
4) Death = the best thing that could happen to somebody. Death = pure ecstasy. Death is represented by the old lady that has been stalking Jacob all throughout his "trip". She takes him on his gurney to God. Death is the doorway to divinity/ divine understanding/ ultimate peace.
5) the notion of "War" or "Battle" = This is a symbol. It is not meant to be interpreted as a literal battle involving guns and tanks. It represents the war in our souls, the inner fight between good and evil that wages in the hearts of us all. What is significant to note is that Jacob is trying to get well. He is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. We don't know what kind of life he led prior to the movie's beginning. All that matters is that you understand that he made decisions that led to others losing their lives. Essentially, the man messed up and has a lot of guilt, regrets, and trauma that he needs to deal with in order to move on.
5) Trauma Surgeon vs. Sargeant vs. the verb "surge" = Jacob was an army sargeant, who was fighting in a war. Once again, NOT a literal sargeant, and NOT a literal Surgeon. If he was a man of destruction in his past life, he is in this purgatory world hallucinating that he is a Surgeon who is trying to put himself back together again. He wants to heal, as oppose to hurt. Now... the verb "surge" is defined as "to spring up or rise". Jacob has to SURGE his way to Heaven, enlightenment and all that other good stuff. He has to rise from his ashes.
6) The phoenix = The phoenix is a mythical bird that rises from its ashes. The phoenix comes to Jacob in the form of a prostitute, or if not a prostitute, then at the least a very slutty woman, who is actually an angel.
That's what I got from the movie. If it helps you understand it better, then my aim has been achieved. Have a pleasant day, and thanks for reading.
-- Esmeralda Jai