It's filled with so many references and so much self-conscious irony that it's nearly impossible to make sense of it all. According to Serpentine, "The future is just as [he] imagined.". Ambitious and arresting to the eye -- the gray palette serves the film well -- it's too bad that Southland Tales is also pretentious, chaotic, and tries too hard. In the "Southland Tales" universe, when war broke out following the nuclear attacks in Texas, Treer was contracted to build several mega-zeppelins to ferry troops and equipment across the world. Together the two have written a screenplay, called "The Power," that tells the story of the end of the world. Fifteen years after Southland Tales was booed out of the Cannes Film Festival, director Richard Kelly tells Inverse he embraces the chorus of jeers. However, he has stated several times that if Sony commissioned one (based on the sales of the current DVD), he would happily be involved in a "Director's Cut" DVD in the future with more special features and deleted scenes from the Cannes cut. Background newscasts in "Southland Tales" are also constantly referring to earthquakes, wild fires and "red tides." It's also symbolism for the above quote: almost a foreboding for the ending of the film where Roland turns out to be the Messiah. So if that's anything to go by, it may have been Al-Qaeda. Most of the screenplay is included in the "Prequel Saga.". Edit, Not really, but it explains why the tattoo of Jesus on the back of Boxer's neck starts bleeding at the end of the film. This is where "Operation Dream Theory" came into play. The world ends. "Yes They Can! Is the soundtrack availiable for the film? The mega-zeppelin explodes, and its pieces scatter across L.A. || Southland Tales Movie Ending Explained in English#endingexplained endingexplained Copyright Disclaimer: No Copyright in. That's why Taverner always feels so guilty. Pregnant woman from Revelation 12 and 13 (Puppet of the Anti-Christ)Bobby Frost and Vaughn Smallhouse: "ZORA: "I disagree. The first three chapters of the story are told in a graphic novel called Southland Tales: The Prequel Saga, which among other things explains Roland Traveler's back story, Boxer's journey from the desert back to Los Angeles, and the true origin of Krysta and Boxer's screenplay. When Fortunio and Boxer arrive at the rendezvous point, this is where the two are introduced to one another The second section of the film ("V: Memory Gospel") begins. The movie begins in earnest when Boxer wakes up on a beach near the Santa Monica pier. A tide-powered generator, however, relies on an external source of power, the tides, and would not fall under that definition. The title refers to the Southland, a name used by locals to refer to Southern California and Greater Los Angeles. In 2021, Kelly announced that there are developments to expand the film into a franchise. Edit, No. Kelly's previous cult masterpiece Donnie Darko (2001) and the . How Kelly persuaded the likes of Wallace Shawn, Amy Poehler, Justin Timberlake, Cheri Oteri, and Mandy Moore to go along for the ride is confounding. Southland Tales is a 2006 American dystopian comedy thriller film written and directed by Richard Kelly. The White Horseman, with his rifle post being his horse and his rifle his bow. "It will never be night again and they will not need lamplight or sunlight, because the Lord God will be shining on them. I think defecation is the result of an inferior food supply and spiritual weakness. You could argue that all of Southland Tales occurs in the Tangent Universehence the film's alternate history of the past three years, and its weird mishmash of pop culture. Cheri Oteri plays Zora Carmichaels, while Jon Lovitz plays violent police officer Bart Bookman who is in love with Zora. As he waves at himself in the mirror, he notices that his reflection's movements don't match his own. What follows is a hyperkinetic Fox News-style summary of the following three years in the "Southland Tales'" alternate universe: After the nuclear attacks in Texas, the United States reinstates the draft, and by October 2005, war (sponsored by Hustler and Bud Light) breaks out with Iran, Syria, Afghanistan, North Korea and Iraq -- where Pilot Abilene, the film's narrator, is injured in a friendly-fire accident. Pilot Abilene, who has been watching the scene from his gun turret, shoots and kills Starla. "Memory Gospel" by MobySongs Not Featured in on the soundtrackFrom the album Hotel by Moby (2-CD Deluxe Edition): "Snowball (played in opening sequence before opening title) "Blue Paper" (played when Dion and Dream are having discussion about bowel movements, also in trailer) "Overland" (heard before and after Pilot's dream sequence) "Aerial" "Hotel Intro" (featured in Cannes cut, not in theatrical cut) "Live Forever" (featured in Cannes cut, not in theatrical cut)Other songs not featured: Water Pistol" by Moby "If I Could Be With You (One Hour Tonight)" by Louis Armstrong "All These Things That I've Done" by The Killers "Planet Telex (Live in San Francisco)" by Radiohead Symphony No. If the two Taverners were to touch, Theory warns, the fourth dimension would collapse onto itself and the world would come to an end. Its story overlaps with the movie, so it explains some of the back story. As part of the deal, the Baron has Serpentine cut off the prime minister's left hand. He stopped editing the film and was also unable to complete all of the visual effects in time for the screening. Roland Taverner, his (alleged) twin -- a racist cop -- is sitting unconscious in the main room, having been kidnapped and drugged by the Neo-Marxists. As part of his job, Jericho must tattoo a symbol from every world religion onto his body and, when the Messiah reaches maturity, the "winning" religion's symbol will bleed snake blood. Unfortunately for the Neo-Marxists, their operative in USIDent, Kenny Chan, has been compromised. However, its inventor Baron von Westphalen and his associates are hiding the fact that the generators alter the ocean's currents and cause the Earth to slow its rotation, and that the transmission of Fluid Karma to portable receivers (via quantum entanglement) is ripping holes in the fabric of space and time. "[44], In a 2013 interview, Kelly said he considered this work as "the thing that I'm most proud of, and I feel like it's sort of the misunderstood child or the banished child. In March 2004, Kelly and Cherry Road Films began development of Southland Tales. ZORA: "You know there's this theory that humans will evolve to a state of existence where bowel movements are no longer necessary. One moment, for example, is during Cyndi's meeting where she asks Krysta how much of her own money is she putting into her career makeover. It turns out that Fortunio has been on the Baron's payroll all along. [It] restores an uncanny to American culture, she wrote in Fetishism and Curiosity, that the uncanny president disavows. In Southland Tales we have a movie whose frenetic, all-American surrealism its blend of censorship and sexuality, commerce and violence spookily pre-empted the prevailing culture under Donald Trump a decade before he was elected president. Using the graphic novels, the Book of Revelation, friends and whatever else we could find, we've pieced together everything you need to know (or at least everything we've been able to figure out) about "Southland Tales.". If you'd like to skip directly to our question-and-answer section, click here. Interview with Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried", "Southland Tales director hopes to reunite with Dwayne Johnson for planned sequel", "Richard Kelly Talks 'Southland Tales', The Time Travel Prequel & His James Cameron-Inspired 'Donnie Darko' Sequel [Interview]", Southland Tales: Music From The Motion Picture, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Southland_Tales&oldid=1140958996, CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown, Articles with dead external links from July 2022, Articles with permanently dead external links, Articles with dead external links from September 2018, Articles with dead external links from March 2018, Short description is different from Wikidata, Album articles lacking alt text for covers, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2019, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, "Wave of Mutilation" (UK surf version) by, This page was last edited on 22 February 2023, at 17:09. Edit, Other than a name made up by Richard Kelly, an interpretation can be that the words "fortune" (fortunate) and "bald" can be taken from the name, and used to describe the character. Unfortunately, the reworked film was received just as poorly, seen as an unfinished version of something much bigger. Then she pulls out her gun and threatens to kill herself unless she can give Boxer a blowjob. Two souls join into one, the forth dimension collapses. "[39] In her review for the Los Angeles Times, Carina Chocano wrote, "You get the sense that Kelly is too angry to really find any of it funny. Edit, Richard Kelly stated in his interview with Empire, She was designed as a sort of Arianna Huffington meets Jenna Jameson. For . Ronald walks up to Martin Kefauver's Hummer, which is parked near the ocean. Edit, Fortunio found Boxer lying on a road in Nevada, so he saved him and both of them try and figure out a way to get across the Nevada border back into California. With many repeated usage, Chemical Bleeders can sometimes see both ways (ahead and back in time). When a confrontation erupts near the Neo-Marxist drop box, Zora and Bart are both killed by a soldier. When scientists injected fluid karma into the soldiers, they became telepathic and could see into the past and, eventually, the future. The world ends. He then asked her to forecast the last three days on Earth, and she made her prediction in the form of a screenplay: "The Power." [22], Kelly edited the film down to the basic storylines of the characters portrayed by Scott, Gellar, and Johnson. Blue, in an hour you feel new, and you can forget about Mellow yellow or Agent Orange, 'cause hey, I'm giving you blood red." Reading the graphic novels shows that she had the revelation of the screenplay, which happened (more or less) as she said it would, much as the book of revelation was occurring (more or less) as John had proposed it. The Baron phones Simon Theory (Kevin Smith), an old bearded man, and instructs him to "remove the body from Utopia Three.". I still don't know what that movie is about. Ronald and Martin Kefauver pull up to the Rove Credit Union where Kefauver tries to withdraw his savings. Ronald agrees to take Boxer for a ride-along so he can research his role. It is suddenly interrupted when Boxer pulls out a gun and threatens to kill himself unless everybody evacuates the mega-zeppelin. Also, a very subtle reference took place when Bart Bookman (Jon Lovitz) had just killed Dream and Dion: he said "Flow my tears". The Book of Revelation, or the Revelation of John, was written by an unknown person in the first century. If you replace the Antichrist with the bourgeoisie, and the kingdom of God with a communist utopia, you've got the same basic narrative. . It's a sign that he is at the edge of uncertainty as to who he is. He said, "[The original script] was more about making fun of Hollywood. Kelly said: "[Southland Tales] will only be a musical in a post-modern sense of the word in that it is a hybrid of several genres. Starla Von Luft, the double-crossing USIDent employee, is reading a copy of "The Power" at work. Jericho Cane is the name of Arnold Schwarzenegger's character in "End of Days.". When Boxer and Taverner went through the space-time rift, they traveled 69 minutes back in timecreating duplicate versions of themselves. Jericho Crane is a "John the Baptist" style prophet, Krysta is the "Whore of Babylon" (and her energy drink the "Cup of Abominations"), the Baron is the "Antichrist" etc For half of Kelly's epic film about the end of the world, characters are quoting T.S. Certainly, the future as depicted here is deeply complex. Bing is freaked out by the murders, and decides that he no longer wants to be part of the group. No idea. Tab wanted Ronald to help the Neo-Marxists destroy USIDent, so he entrusted Roland and Ronald to Zora Carmichaels, who then drove them to Venice Beach. "Kelly launches Darko Entertainment", by Dade Hayes, "How The World Ends: Conversation With Richard Kelly", "Anatomy of a Cannes Disaster: What Happened After 'Southland Tales' Was Booed", "Exclusive Interview: Richard Kelly (Southland Tales)", Southland Tales - Music From The Motion Picture, "Apocalypse Soon: A Mushroom Cloud Doesn't Stall 2008 Electioneering". But if Southland Tales follows the same logic as Donnie Darko, as laid out in that film's DVD extras, when the fourth dimension is corrupted, it causes the creation of two parallel universes: the Tangent Universe and the Primary Universe. It's just more physical. As the party in the Mega-Zeppelin kicks off, Boxer heads upstairs to the Baron's secret chamber. After losing a game of cards, Fortunio needed to make his way back into California, and Krysta offered to set him up with a visa. The screenplay ends at a McDonald's restaurant, when Caleb starts belching noxious gas and launching fireballs. The baby, she explains, is the Messiah, and Jericho is his guardian. Scientists are saying the futures going to be far more futuristic than they originally predicted, Krysta suggests, as if this helped to explain anything. Many of his answers are contained in this FAQ. The baby, she explains, is the Messiah, and Jericho is his guardian. Pimp is American slang for badass. The Tangent Universe is an alternate reality to our own. Edit, Richard Kelly stated in his interview with Empire film magazine, The idea of wireless electricity and tides being a source of energy, and there being a potentially world-altering energy source under the ocean, is based on real scientific theory. The film that is most obviously referenced is "Kiss Me Deadly," a 1955 film noir about a private detective who uncovers a plot to detonate a nuclear device. Then, after several detours, Krysta and Boxer made their way to Los Angeles, where Boxer went on a nighttime stroll on the beach, injected himself with fluid karma and passed out. Krysta has decided to make her sex tape public by placing it into a Neo-Marxist drop box. Zora Carmichaels (Cheri Oteri), a member of the Neo-Marxist movement, buys blank bullets from Walter Mung (Christopher Lambert) in an ice cream truck filled with weapons. However, there was a promotional soundtrack that was given to members of the press when the film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2006. The Taverner twins are revealed to be the same person by the engineers of Treer, duplicated when Roland traveled through a rift in space-time, while Boxer has become the most wanted man in the world despite his political ties and his having the fate of the future, in the form of a prophetic screenplay foretelling the end of the world, in his hands. Where does the information in this FAQ come from? Ronald Taverner, meanwhile, has picked up Zora and Bing Zinneman, a new member of the Neo-Marxists. He played a character named "Donnie" in a movie with Boxer Santaros (in an obvious allusion to "Donnie Darko"). Both vehicles come to a rest in the middle of a shootout and Walter Mung is killed. Its depiction of an American teenager experiencing premonitions about doomsday clocks and jet crashes suddenly became more piquant in light of such astounding tragedy. Roland, a Hermosa Beach police officer, became involved in a "deep conspiracy" and he would be in grave danger if anyone found out that he was alive. Director: Richard Kelly. It opened in Canada, as well as nationwide in the United States, in just 63 theaters,[6] on November 16, 2007. Two of the solders that participated in the experiment were Roland Taverner and Pilot Abilene. What's the deal with this screenplay-within-the-movie that all the characters keep referring to? Zelda Rubinstein and Beth Grant portray Dr. Katarina Kuntzler and Dr. Inga Von Westphalen, members of the baron's entourage. Spirituality has nothing to do with it. What exactly happens at the end of the movie? The movie plays in the background in several scenes, and in the "Prequel Saga," Krysta tells Boxer it is his favorite movie. 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southland tales ending explained