Movie Review: “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”

Charlie Kaufman’s Latest Romance Thriller

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Estefani Rios

Charlie Kaufman’s latest movie “I’m Thinking of Ending Things” makes viewers question their life in the form of a romantic thriller.

Isaiah Prophet, Reporter

Relationships can be tough, but what happens when that relationship isn’t really a relationship at all? Charlie Kaufman’s “I’m Thinking of Ending Things” is a Netflix original thriller/horror film that tells the story from the perspective of Lucy as she embarks with her boyfriend on their first road trip. However, the longer Lucy begins to ponder their dynamic, the more strange and odd things become.

The movie begins with ominous tones and Lucy’s narration of the current state of relationship with her boyfriend Jake and the doubts she feeling despite Jake seeming like a good guy. As they make their way towards their destination which happens to be Jake’s parents’ house, Lucy converses in her mind about the perplexities of why people stay in relationships that they know aren’t going to work, and her internal conflict is something that many of the viewers can relate to. Throughout the rest of the drive to his parents’ house hints are given off that not everything is as it seems. 

As the couple arrives at Jake’s parents’ house there is an ominous and strange mood that sets the scene from the very beginning. Everything seems a bit off, strange coincidences like photos on the wall that match Lucy’s, exact copies of Lucy’s painting at home and the odd dynamic between Jake and his parents. As the movie continues it shifts into an almost dream-like reality slowly maintaining suspense by taking the viewer through one imaginative scene onto the next. The true horror in the film isn’t expressed by a cheap jumpscare or some CGI monster instead it comes from our own minds and the fear that this situation we find Jake and Lucy in could become our own reality. 

In the end, everything ties up leaving the viewers with one final question, what could have been and what have we become? My favorite part about this movie is that it left me with new questions that I now ask myself. All in all, I give this movie an eight out of ten for its use of non-traditional storytelling through imagery and its clever use of metaphors and references throughout the film.