Films

- C O N T I N U O S   T H E M E   O F   D E S I R E -

After watching the two films I realized that the same theme of love and desire can be seen through just about any medium. Whether it is reading a book, looking at art, listening to music or watching a movie - love and desire are everywhere! In the film Solaris, Chris (George Clooney) is struggling with trying to overcome the inner desire for his wife. He is visited by her when he's on the ship near Solaris and is very quickly (and easily) tricked into thinking she's real.

Chris' wife had died and having her back literally made no sense. At first Chris rejected the idea of his wife but then his love and desire won over. After a while the plot progresses and we learn that the new Rea is a replica of the real one that was made from Chris' memory. Even though he knew this, he could not bring himself to let her go again. His desire for his wife was so strong that he was willing to suspend his disbelief and trick himself into thinking it was her.

At the end of the movie Chris is faced with the choice of choosing reality or fiction. In reality his wife was dead and he could never have her back but in Solaris Rea could always be there, just as he remembered. Although many people would choose to keep their reality - Chris could live the life he wanted and be happy in this facsimile of his mind. I think this movie shows how strong and powerful desire can be. Do we have enough control as humans to make decisions when desiring or are we completely impotent to its power. Did Chris really have a choice or was his desire too strong?