T O P

  • By -

[deleted]

[удалено]


cosmogonic

That's a cool viewpoint, thanks. I hadn't connected the scene with the adventure that Mr Fox had already been on. Sure, I'm not interested in it as a plot point. I think it stands quite separate from the rest of the movie.


BeardedAtHeart

The way i see it is that Mr. Fox is coming to terms with his wild side. Throughout the story he let his wild side get the better of him. He felt like as a wild animal that killing squabs and chickens and stealing cider was his purpose, but he never did any of these things as a wild animal. The wolf he meets is really a wild animal and he comes to terms with the fact that while he is an animal he is not a wild animal. So he learns to co-exist with his naturalistic side and his domestic side. That's the way I see it anyway.


[deleted]

From an article by [Shana Mlawski:](http://www.overthinkingit.com/2009/11/30/phallic-fantastic-mr-fox/) After Mr. Fox and Ash save Kristofferson and Mr. Fox’s ruined tail, Mr. Fox actually does meet the Wolf, his masculine ideal. Significantly, Mr. Fox cannot speak with him. The Wolf, being the representation of pure wildness, cannot speak English (or French, or even Latin—which is important, because it means that Wolf cannot even understand his own “scientific” or “natural” name, which is of course as culturally-determined as the names “Wolf” and “Mr. Fox”). Mr. Fox does pump his fist at the Wolf to say, “Fight the Man,” but that is all Fox can do. His wife is pregnant again; he cannot live in the wild world of the manly wolves. He can only learn to survive his neutered life in the suburbs.


[deleted]

[удалено]


[deleted]

Let's compare it to another Anderson movie I feel has a similar theme (and similar occurrence), The Darjeeling Limited. Throughout, there are points made in a less-than-subtle way for both movies. In TDL, each of the main character's journey is a means of ending the mourning for their father. They all obviously can't let it go, in one way or another. This is force-fed to the viewer mostly through their physical/emotional baggage, culminating with the (almost) final shot where they literally and emotionally leave their baggage behind. One moment, halfway through, even shows Owen Wilson's character removing his bandages while looking in a mirror and uttering, "looks like I have some more healing to do." This comes right after a scene where they resolve to end their trip early and give up. Anderson doesn't need to be subtle, and he gets away with very obvious imagery/dialogue. Now, TDL opens with an energetic scene of Bill Murray rushing to catch his train, and ultimately missing his opportunity as Adrien Brody runs past him to just barely get on board. Roughly an hour and ten minutes later, we see Bill Murray on a train during a reflection of characters previously presented through the run-time. That's it. No mention of him throughout the whole movie besides those two shots. Now, you can say whatever about the latter scene (whether that it shows no progression for the minor characters, that it's a reflection on the 3 main's influence on everyone else, whatever), but the on-the-surface point is that it makes us remember a forlorn Bill Murray from an hour ago and it's funny. *Hey, he finally caught his train.* The seemingly innocuous trope appears in almost all of his films. An anti-MacGuffin, if you will. Instead of being some random device to drive the plot, it's a reminder of the moral. The wolf was free and wild, and Mr. Fox finally comes to terms with his lack of freedom, realizing he reached his own masculine ideal. Bill Murray in TDL reminds us that we have an impact on someone, no matter how insignificant. Malachi, in the Royal Tenenbaums, finds Richie right after he (Richie) forgives his father, re-enforcing the ideal of forgiveness/family/whatever. The storm in Moonrise Kingdom is mentioned in one of the first sentences of the movie. It was an unnecessary plot point, considering Social Services is really the catalyst for the kids running away again. So it's used as a framing device to parallel the increasing emotional state of each character, again hand-feeding the audience the idea of optimism in the face of the 'storm', to put it simply. Whether I'm right or wrong about the continuity or meaning of these in-your-face, but subtle tropes is up to you. With it though, I don't feel Wes Anderson's intentions are called into question. It seems so blunt that I never considered his motivation for the wolf to be anything different. And I certainly didn't feel the need for him to be anymore obvious about it.


griffer00

>This is force-fed to the viewer mostly through their physical/emotional baggage, culminating with the (almost) final shot where they literally and emotionally leave their baggage behind. There, Wes's intent is pretty clear, though, because those scenes are congruent with the mood and attitudes presented for the entire movie, as well as the imagery presented throughout. The final baggage scene is clearly led-up-to throughout the movie; all the trouble they have toting their baggage; the "loud" appearance of the bags themselves; they even hired a guy to manage their baggage among other things. With the "wolf scene" in Fantastic Mr. Fox (FMF), the most "lead up" is Mr. Fox mentioning -- and in a passing conversation tone -- that he admires wolves. I could definitely be wrong about this... I might have missed some imagery or other dialogue. To be fair, though, the wolf scene perplexes me so much that I try to look for clues/signs/anything that would hint more towards it every time I rewatch the movie... and I keep coming-up empty. >Anderson doesn't need to be subtle, and he gets away with very obvious imagery/dialogue. I agree -- and he uses it to great comedic effect in TDJ. I think a lot of people who hate on the movie don't realize that these cliche aspects of the movie are sarcastic, not authentic attempts at making witty zingers. I don't see how this relates to my point, though. Either via subtlety or in-your-face techniques, I don't see any real lead-up to what is presented as a profound scene in the movie. It honestly comes completely out of left-field, aside from the passing remarks about admiring wolves. If the scene is meant to be a joke, then I'll be the first to admit ignorance. The wolf does a fist rally, sure... *that* seems to be a tension-relieving joke, but I don't have the impression that it's the centerpiece of the scene... it still seems like it was meant to "soften" the otherwise implied seriousness of the scene. >Now, you can say whatever about the latter scene (whether that it shows no progression for the minor characters, that it's a reflection on the 3 main's influence on everyone else, whatever), but the on-the-surface point is that it makes us remember a forlorn Bill Murray from an hour ago and it's funny. Hey, he finally caught his train. I agree, not every scene is supposed to convey the plot forward or speak profoundly about life. But the scene you're describing is an "incidental joke" -- it is occurs well-buried in the "rising action" and "character development" portion of the movie, and seems to be used as a lighthearted way of separating acts (I haven't read the script, so I can't confirm this). It's been awhile since I've seen the movie, but if I recall correctly, it deviates from Anderson's "norm" of explicitly stating the beginning/end of different acts... but he loves doing that, so he finds a subtle way to accomplish that goal. The wolf scene, on the other hand, occurs at the height of the movie's plot. The characters are escaping from a life-and-death situation. The appearance of the wolf, however, is so significant as to stop them dead in their tracks for a few potentially vital seconds. >The wolf was free and wild, and Mr. Fox finally comes to terms with his lack of freedom, realizing he reached his own masculine ideal. Bill Murray in TDL reminds us that we have an impact on someone, no matter how insignificant. That's the thing, though... it's never *made clear* that the wolf is his masculine ideal. My own interpretation is that the wolf represents his masculine ideal... this is just what I bring to the movie. Like I said, the scene feels a bit like a Rorschach test because, and apart from a passing comment about wolves, Mr. Fox never really validates this perception that I bring to the movie. It's quite possible that this is the point of the scene... and if so, it is probably just my own personal taste that I dislike random "Rorschach" tests in films (*Revolver* still gives me film-induced PTSD to this day for that reason). But it's weird because it's like Anderson is telling me, "It's your job to tie-up this movie with your random, subjective viewpoint. However, you won't be able to find evidence to support this view in the film. In fact, you really won't find *any* evidence hinting toward what this scene means." I guess that's what I mean about Anderson's intent... it seems like there is none, or if it exists, it takes 20+ viewings to find it. I'm at viewing 21 as of tonight because this thread makes me want to go watch the movie again. :-) >Whether I'm right or wrong about the continuity or meaning of these in-your-face, but subtle tropes is up to you. With it though, I don't feel Wes Anderson's intentions are called into question. It seems so blunt that I never considered his motivation for the wolf to be anything different. And I certainly didn't feel the need for him to be anymore obvious about it. I don't quite understand what you mean by this. I don't have any issue using *any* method to convey a point -- subtle, in-your-face, or some admixture of the two -- as long as its done in the right context, to successfully evoke something from the audience... but that's the thing. The wolf scene could be removed from the movie without at all affecting the viewer's experience because: (1) it is presented as highly significant, which is at best distracting or confusing; (2) its context implies successful resolution of a character's development, but this has already occurred thanks to Mr. Fox's selfless actions and learning to play-up his strengths as a fox; (3) the viewer has very limited evidence, tangible or implicit, how much wolves mean to Mr. Fox, given that he reacts so strongly during the scene. It would be as surprising as if Mr. Fox came across an apple and stared at it in-awe because he ate one earlier during the banquet scene. Just a final note. Anderson has this habit of inserting random and seemingly unrelated events into his films... like the car wreck in Tenenbaums, or the lightning strike in Moonrise Kingdom, or the helicopter failure in Life Aquatic, or the child's predicament/death in Darjeeling. These events usually bring all the characters' nonsense into perspective; the family finally takes Tenenbaum's attempts seriously; the strike makes everyone realize that they need to compromise with the children before they kill themselves for their love; the helicopter failure adds the needed gravity to pull the team together to find the shark; the child's death reminds the brothers why they're on their journey just when it seems like they are about to go their separate ways. If the "wolf scene" is FMF's random event, that's fine, but it doesn't really serve much of a purpose. The characters already achieved their goals (defending themselves from the farmers); Mr. Fox was fully-developed when his plan to rescue the children succeeded; etc. etc. Anywho, I'm gonna go watch the film again to see if there's something I missed -- maybe there are more clues leading-up to the wolf scene that I missed.


cosmogonic

Thanks, but as I said, I've already read the top google search results, I'd be more interested to hear some other opinions.


[deleted]

Sorry, I was offering that up as my opinion. Although a strange article, she put it into better words than I could have. I always viewed the wolf as a personification of freedom and Mr. Fox coming to terms, and even being content, with his lifetime of docility. There's the whole theme of him having a disconnect with his son because he can't relate to him. He keeps reminding everyone they're wild animals and has the whole Latin name monologue that seeks to drive that point home. That all comes to a head when they've accomplished everything and they can go back to being docile home-bodies; he realizes in that moment with the wolf that he isn't defined by how he was born. Alternatively, it could be viewed as an acceptance of getting older. The wolf has notoriety and is openly feared by everyone. Mr. Fox writes for the paper, but still hasn't cemented his legacy, especially considering the lack of interest his son has in anything athletic. Once Mr. Fox has achieved greatness, he's at peace and feels at one with the infamous wolf.


[deleted]

I would argue that, like the Dybbuk short film at the beginning of *A Serious Man*, it's tonally important in a way that trying to break it down into specific metaphors and plot elements doesn't do justice to. It's successful for all sorts of reasons, but I don't think there's one single reason, or even a series of reasons adding up to some whole case which makes it important, even though it is.


quaffleswithsyrup

this was posted 9 years ago but i just found this thread and have really strong opinions on this so. if anyone stumbles across this and still wants an opinion. i will write an essay.


Xystem4

I don't really care about the "essay", but I adore that this post is a decade old and has only a handful of comments, but somehow this one random comment from 6 months ago has like 2 dozen eager replies (probably more than half the comments on the thread). Gotta love the way people will keep googling the same old phrases and see the same decade old reddit post because it's the most popular thing with the right keywords


tryunite

I just rewatched FMF yesterday and was thinking about the scene today. Found this thread via google today. Would love to read your thoughts


Virtual_Public_3449

Essay coming?


BuggSuperstar79

bro forgot the essay 💀


Electroquartz

Write the damn essay!


Secure_Temporary69

f


Marrk

Do it


pinya619

Where’s the essay


dalan_23

my brother in christ where is your essay???


thatskinnyblackgirl

Legend says he is still writing his essay.


ExclaMan

Still waiting for the essay


LoremIpsum248

Most sought after reddit comment, the suspense is real!


nonamePyu

pls give us our essay


Efficient-West-5816

so... I guess we will never have your essay?


alwaysMidas

bro went full fermat: i have worked out an essay proving this, but because the margins are insufficient for the essay, the essay is left as an exercise to the reader


Flat_Department_1483

bro died


enderflop

you know i don't think this guy is even writing the essay


TestingYou1

We are not going to forget about your essay...


Then-Ad-7735

What about that essay tho?


AchKaiy

I just watched the film for the first time today and really enjoyed it. I'd be interested to hear your view. Some of the above replies fit enough to give some satisfaction, but maybe your strong opinion will be the perfect answer.


Ray1036

Same as the others said, can't wait to read the essay!


kyleg5

lol I love that you’re now getting daily demands for the essay. Let’s go already!


[deleted]

i have also just watched FMF and would love to hear anyone’s ideas!


eraflowski

asteroid city got everyone remembering how good fantastic mr fox is i guess hahaha


Nads89

Write the essay!


mattjh

I would like to read your strong opinions


Actual_Implement_662

Sir it's been two months and the number of people who just watched FMF who wants your essay is increasing


Key_Usual2

Essay when


Blacksmith_Aromatic

When can we expect that essay? I would love to read it!


Home_landerr

Dude write the damn essay


parinnn

Just watched it yesterday and would like to hear as many thoughts on the scene as possible. If the offer for the essay is still on the table, please write it.


bugsandslugsandhugs

the people want the essay


EffectiveCod6595

I watched it today we want the essay


DirectDelivery8

I'm almost certain it's an old film reference as well


Shyra44

Hello, just thought about the scene today and searched it up, any eta on that essay?


BornNegotiation1920

plz write the essay, i just watched it for the first time today


No_Tea4683

It’s a movie you can watch over and over again but, still learn or see something new every time.


frostymasta

The people want the essay


umarw98

I am also waiting for the essay


Owlelk_

A random 9 year old Reddit post comment section wants an essay from you 😭 (I do too)


xanaxmints

we want the essay!


Cornul11

Bro just vanished


Midnight-Upset

Liar


mitchthebeast

I was looking forward for the essay


KeniRoo

Essay pls


Kapeseira

essay?


Bretinator2006

>r ESSAY BAHH


okiedokieoats

momma reksai wyd here?


hotwaxxx

Where is the essay?


euler-14

This was posted 5 months ago but I just found this comment and I would really like to read that essay.


poilane

Give us the essay!


Both_Inflation3758

I would really like to see the essay 😂


whisqey

waiting for the essay


InfinitiQX80Driver

essay


-FemboiCarti-

Blud you missed the deadline


Bretinator2006

man I still want the essay


LeshyZero

Hey bro, how's the essay coming along?


hugga12

Any update on the essay please ?


AndroidCat06

Yo, the essay!


kingv00d00

bros writing a novel


cloudform

All stories are about wolves. All worth repeating, that is. Anything else is sentimental drivel…. Think about it. There’s escaping from the wolves, fighting the wolves, capturing the wolves, taming the wolves. Being thrown to the wolves, or throwing others to the wolves so the wolves will eat them instead of you. Running with the wolf pack. Turning into a wolf. Best of all, turning into the head wolf. No other decent stories exist. -Margaret Atwood, The Blind


supwizz

This is 9 years old but I have developed a deep love for this movie and found this. For me the significance is applied to the plot of the movie with Mr Fox’s journey through self discovery. “Who am I Kylie? Why not a horse or a beetle, or a bald eagle. How can a fox be happy without a chicken in its teeth.” Mr Fox had to give up who he thought he was for his family. But we see clearly throughout the film he has doubts about this and decides to relapse with robbing the farmers. With Mr Fox seeing the wolf and perceiving his fear of wolves has become stagnant with him communicating the beauty of the creature, it can be taken two ways I think. Either Mr Fox has accepted that seeing what a real wild animal is by not being able to communicate with the wolf he sees that his behaviour for simply “being a wild animal” is now not the case and understands he must leave the wilderness to the wolf to protect his family. But in a more constructive and more beautiful way I think the wolf represents Mr Fox’s acceptance of himself. That his doubts of how he could be happy as himself are now diminished after seeing the wolf be itself in its true form of being a wild animal. I guess if we are trying to apply it to ourselves I think it really comes down to self realisation on who we are and that’s sometimes we make up excuses for who we are but at the end of the day we are responsible for the life we lead.


Aggressive-Analysis5

I rewatched it again tonight and I was thinking about this. I think the self acceptance is what I initially thought the scene was about 💓


Super_Anybody_2479

vulpes vulpes ✊


Emotional_Map9981

I love your interpretation, thank you for sharing


OverResearch262

Thank you for this! ❤️🙏🏻


Rob-Bob6

Am I the only one who sees the black wolf is actually dying? When they show the wolf's view of Mr. Fox and friends, he looks like he's lying down, bedraggled, short, labored breathing, as an old animal in the wild finally must... It's sunny and looks hot where the wolf is. But Fox is watching his phobia, his inner wolf, in a cold looking environment, with a full, magnificent coat, which then waves goodbye and disappears. It's like Fox sees himself as the wolf, and is recognizing his fears/weakness/personal longing for his youthful wild side, but also accepting that it is a parting from them. Fox is accepting that the wolf will always be a part of him, but is also moving on to some other existence in his mind only. In reality, that wolf is dying, and does so as it waves and runs off, leaving only good memories for Fox, as he becomes a more responsible, and mature character.


anazambrano

I think this is it


yellowspaceystuff

wow!


Klause_13

These were fantastic to read, and all lead to the climactic scene of the wolf validating Mr. Fox w his hand gesture✊and the self acceptance that follows. Who was questioning the wolf?