Can anyone recommend a movie similar to The Fall or The Father that has a theme of spiraling confusion?
It's a bit hard to describe but I felt like both had moments of spiraling confusion with the protagonist watching their worlds fall apart around them that I found really captivating.
I'm trying to think of other examples but The Fall and The Father are ones that came to mind. They are both fantastic films I'd highly recommend.
I haven't seen the example you've listed (The Fall is already on my watchlist and I'm now adding The Father to it too), but I'll try to recommend some that I hope are relevant:
Thank you! That was the third example that on the tip of my tongue. I have been meaning to watch Perfect Blue and Paprika. I own a copy of both so I'll definitely check them out.
Not so fun fact for you: I didn't know what The Lighthouse was about and watched it one night when I was visiting my dad
Oof, that reminds me of the first time I watched Mulholland Drive, I watched it with my parents 🫥 I didn't know what it was about either when I picked it out
Yeah unquestionably it does. It certainly doesn't build in the same way The Father does for instance, but I think on a rewatch (and therefore knowing the twist) it becomes more about a gradual unravelling of Leo's perceptions.
I haven't seen either of those, so I'm not sure, but angel heart(1987), they look like people(2016) sound like what you're talking about, as does the autopsy of Jane doe(2016), although the events happened in a single evening.
The problem is I need more specifics of what you're looking for. The protagonist having their world that fall apart around them is the main premise or at least central theme of so many movies, like the 1982 Thing is an amazing story about somebody's world falling apart, but I'm not sure if that's what you're looking for.
I think shutter Island is a good nominee, to mention the other comments. While knowing any twists will obviously damage the impact of the twist, I think the descent into madness itself is portrayed well in that movie.
Yeah sorry it's a bit hard to explain especially if you haven't seen them. I don't feel like I have a good enough cinematic vocabulary to explain it properly.
It's a bit of layered theme. Confusion is at its core but so is despair and helplessness. Movies like The Thing and Falling Down are good examples of people's lives falling apart but they don't really feel as hopeless or confused almost verging on chaos. Their lives are falling into a different kind of disarray I'd say.
I'll check out some of your recommendations though. I don't think I've seen the first two but I have seen The Autopsy of Jane Doe.