Explained: The Ending of Beau Is Afraid

Warning: This post contains major spoilers for Beau is Afraid

The Enigmatic Ending of Beau is Afraid

In what is arguably one of the most unconventional conclusions of the year, Beau is Afraid leaves viewers with a blend of intrigue and bewilderment. Directed and penned by Ari Aster, known for his psychological explorations, this film chronicles the tumultuous journey of Beau, played by Joaquin Phoenix, in the wake of his mother’s unexpected demise, which serves as a catalyst for his unwinding psyche.

The Journey of Beau

With a runtime of three hours, Beau is Afraid is Aster’s most ambitious film yet, receiving predominantly favorable reviews from critics. The narrative climaxes with the shocking moment when Beau discovers that Mona, his mother, has deceived him about her death. After a struggle, he manages to strangle her, believing he is finally liberated from his burdens. However, this moment of apparent freedom is fleeting; he soon confronts her once again, trapped in a surreal amphitheater where his past transgressions as her son are recited. The film concludes with Beau’s struggle against drowning, leading to an ambiguous fate.

Unpacking Mona’s Deception

The Twist Behind Mona’s Faked Death

Initially led to believe that a chandelier caused his mother’s death, the truth unveils her dramatic act of staging her own demise. Mona felt an overwhelming sense of rejection from Beau, interpreting his failure to visit her as ingratitude for her sacrifices. She believed she provided Beau with everything she lacked in her own childhood, yet remained unsatisfied and unfulfilled in his love.

Mona’s desire to see if Beau would attend her funeral was a final test of his affection. Her extreme approach aimed to elicit unconditional love, and when Beau ultimately failed this test, it cemented her belief that he was incapable of truly caring for her. This act of faking her death illustrates not just her dysfunction, but a twisted view of their relationship.

The Nature of Reality in Beau is Afraid

Exploring the Mental Landscape

Throughout the film, a sense of paranoia and fear pervades as Beau navigates his world, raising questions about what is real and what is a manifestation of his psychological state. As the story unfolds, it becomes evident that much of what transpires is filtered through Beau’s troubled mind. The pervasive feeling of being surveilled speaks to his ongoing anxieties regarding his mother’s influence and expectations.

Beau’s experiences may reflect his subjective reality rather than an objective truth, leading to the perception that his mother’s dramatic actions were part of a larger mental struggle. Ultimately, the film provides a twisted view of how deeply ingrained fears can distort one’s perception of reality.

Examining the Figure of Beau’s Father

What the Representation Signifies

The narrative hints at Beau’s father’s premature death, depicted as a heart murmur that claimed him on the night of Beau’s conception. In an emotional climax, Beau encounters a frail figure, later transformed into a grotesque creature, symbolizing his struggle with masculinity and parental absence. This eerie representation could signify Beau’s internalized conflict surrounding his father’s legacy and the weight of unresolved paternal issues.

Understanding Beau’s Dream Odyssey

A Symbol of His Anxieties

Beau’s vision of a life constrained by familial expectations serves as a poignant metaphor. The odyssey in his dreams, where he briefly finds happiness only to face loss, illustrates his fear of abandonment and failure. He grapples with the notion of being an absent father, mirroring his own father’s absence. This narrative device underscores Beau’s deep-seated guilt and reluctance to embrace the life he desires.

Does Beau Meet His End?

The Ambiguity of the Finale

The conclusion of Beau is Afraid invites diverse interpretations. After strangling Mona, Beau feels momentarily liberated. However, the narrative quickly shifts as he is ensnared once more, this time surrounded by figures from his past—Mona, her lawyer, and an audience. As they enumerate his failures, Beau’s anxiety peaks, culminating in a climactic explosion that casts him into the depths, where his fate remains uncertain.

This scene stands as a metaphor for the emotional turmoil Beau experiences. His potential death in the water evokes imagery of returning to the womb—an ironic twist of being engulfed by the very source of his fears. Here, Beau’s struggles against his mother’s suffocating love culminate, suggesting that his own fears have ultimately consumed him.

The Significance of Elaine’s Fate

Mona’s Influence Evident

Beau’s aversion to intimacy stems from the trauma associated with his father’s death, yet he survives a sexual encounter with Elaine, resulting in her tragic demise. This outcome may reflect Beau’s internalized belief that intimacy is lethal, echoing the fears instilled by his mother. His sexual experience inadvertently becomes a haunting projection of his deepest anxieties, triggered at the moment when the reality of Mona’s agency comes to light.

Interpreting the Ending of Beau is Afraid

The film encapsulates the suffocating reality of living under the weight of fear and anxiety, framing Beau’s relationship with his mother as a central theme. Ari Aster illustrates the hazards of a toxic parent-child dynamic and its impact on personal growth.

The narrative conveys a powerful exploration of how overbearing expectations can paralyze one’s development, portraying Beau’s psychological landscape as a prison of guilt and fear, ultimately impeding his ability to pursue independence.

The Reception of Beau is Afraid‘s Ending

Critical Responses to the Finale

Despite its divisive nature—reflected in the film’s 68% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes—Beau is Afraid garnered a mix of reactions. Joaquin Phoenix’s performance received acclaim, even earning him a Golden Globe nomination, yet the film itself struggled at the box office, generating $12.3 million against a production budget of $35 million (source: Box Office Mojo). The ending has drawn varied opinions, often reflecting the film’s unconventional tone and pacing.

The film’s surreal nature has indeed polarized audiences. In a review for The Guardian, critic Mark Kermode characterized its viewing experience as testing one’s patience:

“I think
Beau Is Afraid
is best described as an amusingly patience-testing shaggy dog story that asks: ‘What if your mother could hear all those unspeakable things you tell your therapist?’ Parts of it are hilarious. Other sections sag. Some will find it insufferable.”

However, Kermode noted a particularly amusing scene that highlighted the film’s comedic undertones, merging body horror and adolescent humor:

“The penultimate funereal farce, about which I have been laughing out loud for weeks, it combines the body horror of David Cronenberg’s
Shivers
with the cock-and-ball sensibility of an adolescent mummy’s boy enthusiastically scrawling graffiti on a toilet wall at school.”

Conversely, positive reviews also emerged, with some critics praising the film’s chaotic conclusion. Nick Allen in his review for Roger Ebert expressed fervent admiration, characterizing it as:

“The film’s third act, its specific events not spoiled here, has ‘Beau Is Afraid’ taking its full form as an exploitation film adapted from a therapist’s notepad. It’s full-on Grand Guignol emotional and psychological trauma, with moments of terror, jaw-dropping cartoonish absurdity, and an uneasy blend of past and present accompanied by a perfectly chosen Mariah Carey song. Aster packs in more characters, revelations, and more explosions of the psychological variety.”

However, he acknowledged the inherent risks of such an ending, noting that while powerful, it bore the weight of ambiguity that may not resonate with all viewers:

“For all of the power within this feverish work, including its fire-and-brimstone performances, it creates a weariness that does not work in Aster’s favor. The sequence is admirable visually–its disquieting modern architecture setting looms over its characters, and there are laugh-out-loud inserted images to level the tone.”

Ultimately, Beau is Afraid stands as a provocative exploration of human fears, relationships, and the complexities of psychological distress, leaving audiences to interpret its enigmatic conclusion.

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