Fight Club 4/24/20

Watching Fight Club in real time is an experience in and of itself, let alone re-watching specific scenes and researching the film to find sources for a thesis paper. This film is a puzzle wrapped in an enigma, and it took hours of analyzing and scrutinizing to reach a conclusion about its eventual message. Ultimately, the film aims to criticize a society that has placed its emphasis upon valuing material possessions. There are two main characters, who end up being two entities of the same person. An unnamed narrator creates an alter-ego by the name of Tyler Durden, who seemingly helps him create purpose in an otherwise meaningless life. Together, the two create an underground fight club, which quickly turns into a cult and then a full blown terrorist organization by the name of Project Mayhem. As the film progresses, the narrator begins to realize that his actions have gone too far, but it is too late to fix, as the world is literally crumbling down around him. The final scene depicts the narrator in the top of a parking garage, having put a bullet through his own head to kill his alter-ego, watching in shock as the result of Project Mayhem culminates. The operation concluded with the bombing of corporate buildings and banks all throughout the city, and as I said, the world literally crashed down before his eyes. Fight Club seemingly promotes the messages of Durden throughout the film, as he presents them with such flash and rough charisma that the absurdity of it all almost seems plausible, or at least poetic. It is not until this final scene that the viewer can comprehend what the director, David Fincher, is attempting to articulate. He aims to prove that while society is severely flawed, and individuals are marginalized due to society's incessant need for status and material possessions, the way to restore order is not by creating chaos. In fact, it only causes more chaos. Durden says, "Reject the basic assumptions of civilization, especially the need for material possessions." This may not be too far off, but the way to go about spreading this message is certainly not by blowing up a city. Meaning can be found, but it cannot be created by destroying what others deem to be meaningful.

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