The original post: /r/movies by /u/bhendel on 2024-06-17 02:01:42.

For example everyone I know that has seen The Menu nods and agrees on the cleverness of the message, but when I ask them what the message is they all disagree. Some say it’s just criticizing snobby chef culture. There’s a lot of movies these days that hook in viewers with shock and violence but are ambiguous on what the point is.

Another famous example is Farenheit 451 which has become a symbol of freedom from censorship and regulation, despite the author meaning it as a criticism of lazy consumers hooked on entertainment. The Jungle by Upton Sinclair is another literary example.

The praised final scene of 2001: A Space Odyssey actually wasn’t meant to be a grand metaphor- instead it was made to make to make sense with the events of the sequel book which explains exactly what happened in that scene.

edit: Donnie Darko is a movie where the director’s words and lore on the ending have nothing to do with any interpretation anyone had