Synecdoche, New York

"Synecdoche" means to refer to a part of something, either the smaller part of a whole or the whole part of something small. Even within the definition of the word there is a felling of a Russian nesting doll. This labyrinthine world of order, or disorder. In fact, this is the world of Kaufman's film.

Is the artist a creator of art? Or, does art create the artist? Is this a film about art? Or, a film about the struggles to be an artist? Is the film, simply, a surreal escape into a world of madness? I'd like to suggest Kaufman is talented enough to have a handle on the meaning of this film. That Kaufman has purpose. And, I'd like to suggest, Kaufman is showing us the struggle for an artist to have complete control. The artist creates a world (through music, film, literature, painting, etc). This is a small part of control. How does the artist cope with being unable to control the day to day? Does he decide to reinvent?

The film is open to many interpretations. I'd like to imagine the film is a second chance imagined. A world where the artist is creator and destroyer. The artist is god. We see the main charter, Caden, imagine himself in many worlds... cartoons, anti-depressant commercials, dreams, etc. Also, we see Caden deciding the day to day path of individual persons from his past. Is he dead? Is he sleeping? Or, does he really have this much control?

To say the film is so specifically focused on the issues I have mentioned would be a complete misread of the film. There are many issues at play: loneliness, religion, divorce, love, war, etc. But, isn't all great art about everything?

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