Love, Death And Robots: Zima Blue: Ending Explained | Full Analysis And Breakdown
Vložit
- čas přidán 19. 03. 2019
- Love, Death and Robots: Zima Blue is an outstanding episode that has one hell of an ending. In this Ending Explained video I'll be breaking down everything that you need to know about the episode and it's final closing scenes. This analysis has heavy spoilers, so if you haven't seen the show yet then I highly recommend that you turn off now.
If you enjoyed this video then please like it and subscribe to the channel for daily breakdowns on all the latest movies, tv shows, games and more! Click Here - / @heavyspoilers
If You Want To Help Support The Channel So I Can Make More Videos Like This Please Donate Here:
www.patreon.com/user?u=7516708
Follow Me On Social Media At:
/ deffinitionmc
/ deffinitionmc
plus.google.com/+definition1988
Read the full Love, Death & Robots: Zima Blue: Ending Explained Breakdown Here - deffinition.co.uk/love-death-a...
#LoveDeathAndRobots #ZimaBlue #EndingExplained
Zima Blue Background
Zima Blue is actually an adaptation of the story of the same name by Alistair Reynolds from his collection of short stories called Zima Blue and Other Stories. Published in 2006 by Night Shade Books, the work contains ten stories including this and Beyond The Aquila Rift which was also adapted for The Netflix Series.
Zima Blue Plot Synopsis
The episode itself follows a universally famous artist that for the very first time is allowing the presence of a journalist, named Clair Markham, to gain insight into his life.
Throughout the episode, we learn about Zima’s past, work and his plans for the future and discover what it means to be human and also not at the same time.
Initially we are told that Zima began life as an artist in portraiture before branching off into the cosmos and painting vast murals that one by one gain his signature style: a Blue block colour that slowly begins to take over his artwork until eventually it stretches beyond it.
Zima Blue’s Art
We witness Zima paint rings around planets and this could potentially be an easter egg for those who have seen the ending of the fourth Episode from Love, Death and Robots, titled Suits.
As Zima begins to divulge his history he informs Claire of a practical, seemingly unimportant Robot that a woman once used to clean her pool. She gained an affection for this Robot and over the years began upgrading it, giving it an almost human like brain so that it is able to create and advance beyond it’s surroundings.
Unfortunately the woman dies and thus the machine is shifted from owner to owner recieving upgrades in the process. We learn that this roboto is in fact Zima and this autobiographical tale ties into his final masterpiece which he is on the verge of unnveiling.
Zima has collected the original pool that he used to clean and rebuilt it as part of his new piece. The titular Zima Blue colouring comes from the tiling of The Pool and it is important to the character is it is the first thing that he ever laid eyes upon.
Zima Blue: Ending Explained
After showcasing the final piece to an audience, Zima jumps into the pool, deconstructing himself in the process and shedding all of the upgrades so that he is able to revert back to the simplistic life that he once had.
In my opinion the overwhelming urge for Zima to return to this simplicity is present and this representation of his will to return to this state is showcased by the fact that the zima blue colouring slowly took over his pieces more and more till that became the main fixation.
The closest similarity to this in pop culture that I can think of is the ending of Citizen Kane in which the titular character utters the word ‘Rosebud’ which is the name that he had on his sled as a child. Kane, similar to Zima, amassed a lot of wealth, traveled to countless places and was regarded as almost God-like, however it did not stop this longing to return to something that he lost long ago.
For his entire life Zima has been on a quest to find meaning throughout not only the galaxy but also through his art. However, he realises that the most peaceful and meaningful part of his life was when he was not concerned about the rest of the universe but rather the simple task ahead of him. This rebirth that closes the episode out reminds us that whilst we may strive for greatness, we will never truly attain enough to feel complete and even in doing so there will be disatisfaction. In going on this journey we will have to sacrifice and leave behind something that is very dear to us and this is why Zima returns to the pool because he accepts that this is the happiest that he ever was.
It’s an amazing message that really makes you appreciate what you have around you and reminds us that there is beauty to be found in everything and that the greatest pleasures come from the simplest things. - Zábava
So, what did you take from the ending of Zima Blue and what did you think of the episode overall? Comment below and let me know and If you enjoyed this video then please like it and subscribe to the channel for daily breakdowns on all the latest movies, tv shows, games and more! Click Here - czcams.com/channels/q3hT5JPPKy87JGbDls_5BQ.html
If You Want To Help Support The Channel So I Can Make More Videos Like This Please Donate Here:
www.patreon.com/user?u=7516708
Follow Me On Social Media At:
facebook.com/DeffinitionMC/
twitter.com/DeffinitionMC
plus.google.com/+definition1988
Hahhahahahaha let go of the robots!
Hahah I love it too much, gonna space the uploads out after this one as there’s a big weekend of films so next video should be Us and then whatever else comes out on Netflix this weekend
@@heavyspoilers yessss US do that 😍
Someone who has completed their quest for knowledge and to become the best that they wanted to be and ready to die. It's what I kind of got from it. After you've done what you wanted to accomplish and nothing else drives you, it's understandable to want to restart or end your own existence or experiences.
What is the music in this video?
Zima Blue is one of the most beautiful animated shorts I have ever watched. So tranquil, breathtaking, moving and profound.
Tranquil is the perfect description for it
Should watch the animatrix, you'll love it
@@heavyspoilers my own description for it is poignant.
Same. Out of all the anthology series, it's the only episode I never get tired of rewatching, even if I know what happens
Couldn't agree more
The thought of him reverting back into a simple machine with only one task, yet also fulfills his entire purpose because that's where his happiest memories were is what gets me every time. Best episode of the entire show for sure.
Agreed. It made me cry the first time I watched it, I was so moved.
This episode had the best message in it out of all the episodes in my opinion, a masterpiece
Yeah, there’s a lot more going on in this episode whereas the others tended to be a lot of shooting and sex
@@spiralsky it was truly magnificent
This episode has to go on par with free robots for my favorite episode
Good Hunting, Free Robots, Bad Travels, and the best- Zima Blue.
“In art, everything is possible, but not everything is necessary.” - Arvo Pärt
Like sex and gore, to me it's not necessary for a good story.
so true
Ooo, great quote from my favorite composer.
🔥🔥🔥
@@mr.matchbox2710 se* could be good for a story
I rewatched this episode several times in my attempt to interpret and understand it. This episode had the biggest effect on me overall. It was so sad yet so powerful. Truly incredible for a 10 minute short film.
ImBreakingBrad all facts and that color "zima blue" is stunning
Accolades for Blue Zima 👏👏 This episode deserves an award... or two🏆🏆
The art in this episode was fantastic. This is also perhaps the only episode I don't mind my parents walking in on me watching lol
@@macmcskullface1004 also lucky 13 and ice age
Lol on last sentence...
also when the yogurt took over
@@nczioox1116 and blind spot
hahahahaha
This is an incredibly profound story of a spiritual journey, and it is incredibly hard to translate it's links to eastern philosophy but I will give it a shot. In buddhism/taoism one is in search of the true self. As the ancient saying goes: ''in the beginning, mountains are mountains and rivers are rivers. in the middle, mountains are not mountains and rivers are not rivers. In the end mountains are mountains and rivers are rivers.'' In other words before you started doubting your true nature you took it as it was, then you started questioning it. But in the end you will realise there was nothing to question.
This relates with the way Zima experienced the world. He started simple, but then as he became self-conscious he started contemplating and expressing himself and exploring the world. His journey is the prime example that money and power does not yield true happiness. He is still searching for that goody that he once started looking for, and realised he couldn't find it in the external world. Finally he realises that he has been there all along. The goody was in himself all this time and when he realised this he could return.
Finding your true nature is about letting go, forgetting, unlearning. As you grow your ego is blinding you from your true self, and in hinduism it is said this is the great act, the theater you are playing on yourself. The great artist Zima Blue is his act. But in the end he returned to the source.
haha,are you chinese？this ancient saying is from china actually. “看山是山，看山不是山，看山还是山”
Wow that was someway of putting it. Life as they say should be driven by needs. When it gets driven by wants, complexity kicks in. Ultimately we humans yearn for a tranquil life, but to achieve that we start complicating matters. But ironically what we really want to achieve would be as simple as a good night sleep when we get to bed, a delicious meal cooked by our loved ones and eating with them spending time with them, and a shelter to live in where we feel safe. That's it. But complexity rises when we start giving measurements to these above parameters. Zima Blue is an eye opening tale which gives us a quiet yet poignant yearning for simple tastes in life.
Thats some high IQ shit there. My brain doesnt go that far yet...
interesting
Thanks for taking the time to explain this in detail. As a scholar of eastern mysticism I was absolutely blown away by Zima Blue and I'm glad that someone took the time to make this connection for other people.
My favorite quote while he dismantled himself:
“extract some simple pleasure from the execution of a task well done.”
Sometimes I also enjoy that pure and uncomplicated fulfillment from the simplest task.
I enjoy washing dishes and playing with my dog but capitalism has me working hard
You not lying!
This episode really fucking touched me.... I can't believe how incredible the story about a pool cleaner was.
I've watched it so many times and it always hits the spot
I'll never look at my stepmom's pool cleaner the same way again.
This episode was my favourite in the Love Death and Robots series. I'm an artist and I'm familiar with the contemporary art world. Zima's struggle and eventual acceptance of the Zima Blue colour was really interesting to me. There are so many artists who are looking for this small kernel of truth at their core and making art to express it. Zima was trying to make his blue paintings bigger and bigger. Trying to fill his whole world with that colour again. He eventually realized that he needed to be smaller. He needed to revert so that he could never see past those blue tiles again. I'm not sure I could make this sort of sacrifice for the sake of happiness. It is admirable though.
From making the idea bigger, filling more of his perceived world
to making himself small enough again, to be only able to be filled fully with the core idea.
I really like how you approached the message of the short. Thanks for inspiration. Have a nice day.
I didn't cry in any episode but this
a truly masterpiece
Thanks for checking out the video
IKR i cried. it's "truly a masterpiece" or "a true masterpiece" :p
John Michael Obliques well, english isnt my main linguage. But hey, thanks
Omg I cried too
he had no more desire. he is finally in the nirvana
Yeah, he finally found peace in his life
Or he was depressed ?🤔
@@k__ashu I wouldn't think so. He fulfilled his passions and satisfied curiosities over the years so he decided to go back to where he was before. He wanted to return to his home. His peace. It seems more like closure than depression.
That's a really interesting take on the short film, and on the idea of nirvana. The reduction of the self until only happiness and peace remain.
2-@5 8# @ !84:@;@
what is a nirvana?
Zima blue answers the most obvious question of zima’s life: What is the purpose of life?
Moreover, usually artists depicts their perspective of life through art. Zima gradually started depicting zima blue in his art until he covered the whole art, its a metaphor of his remembrance of his perception of life. Conclusion: Zima was the perfect artist
Great comment!
I think it was a good analogy for our evolution too. We started as cells and simple organisms that could only distinguish simple forms through a primitive visual system, and we have evolved into very complex being capable of infinitely convoluted ideas and thoughts that can be very exhausting. Only death can ensure simplicity is back. Another analogy could be birth and gestation to adulthood and death
Yeah really good analysis
crikxouba Perfectly stated. I completely agree
well, Zima didn't die, he left enough consciousness for himself to be aware of having performed his task so well, just pointing out
@@dzonyell5808 hard to know what comes after death for us. Maybe we all become swimming pool cleaning robots? 😂
maybe we don't :(
I've seen all the other episodes of Death, Love and Robots but this one really stuck a wedge in my soul. I keep watching this episode again and again.
I watch it at least once a month and I had my kids watch it to. This is by far the most profound and beautiful short I have ever seen.
It's the only family friendly one
4 of us watched Zima Blue, high in a dark room, and 10 minutes later,none of us were the same. It was profound and all of our view points on life was redefined.
this is my favorite episode
Thanks for checking out the video
This film embodies the whole of the human experience in accordance with mysticism and Kabbalah. It is a very deep insight that will be lost on the vast majority. Yet it is, in the end, known to us all. It is amazing and astonishing in both it's complexity and simplicity. Once we have reached the highest state of our development and achievement only then will we be ready to return to the simplicity of our beginning. 10/10
Nice comment, thanks for leaving it and I hope you enjoyed this video
🙏🏽
"its complexity", not "it's".
Zima purposely defunctioning himself is an ART
Zima blue is my favourite out of the anthology.
Yeah such a good one shot
this episode blew my mind. literally the first time i felt mindblown it was too deep i cried
Imagine this whole anthology series was a movie on the big screen. Whaaaaaat!!!!??!!!? 😱😱
R Z nah some of the episodes were utter shit
Fuck... I heard from everyone that this episode is the best in the show. I watched it for the first time last night, didn’t really understand it and thought it was overrated. then watched this video. I just rewatched the episode and cried for the first time in two years. I connected to this episode so deeply.
Thank you
I'm cried in that episode, my favorite!
Thanks for checking out the video
@@Insert639 Secret War, it's too long for a lame history in my opinion
10 minutes ! 10 minutes of an animated story is what took to put every single movie I've ever seen to shame ! This is how you tell a story !
I’d give anything to relive my childhood and I’m only 23. People were right when they said you’ll miss being younger. That was the message I took from this.
When I see this episode I feel that the idea behind is so profound that explaining it with words would make it loose it's true essence. I think that this idea can only be felt or approached but can never be fully understood.
Best insight from the comments I read. It definitely resonates differently with everyone.
Remember when we were kids, how easy it was to live in a moment and enjoy it. kids find their happiness in simple things. As we grow older it becomes harder and harder to live like that.
As we gain more knowledge there is always something that is out of reach which will truly make us happy.
Rewatching this hit me hard. seeing his planetary scaled art pieces inspired by the emotion of satisfaction performing a single simplistic function. It’s beautiful. And humbling to the complexities and chaos of the universe.
Zima Blue is a philosophical masterpiece. Truly breathtaking and touching. One of the, if not the, best LD+R episodes.
Left me with a weird feeling which I can't even explain. It wasn't necessarily a bad feeling though.
Refreshing for it to have something that's not a mindless action romp for once.
I feel like this episode is a representation of something more deep. I watched several times because it has me thinking a lot about it. I think that is attached to the fact that we are constantly looking for something more, something that we already had. And so we realized it was there always (the zima blue forms) it was there, showing up more and more. Untill he realizes that nothing was more real than that. And our life is full of this. We don't realize about the things untill we want to go back to our begin and we unfortunately can't, because we are not robots. Zima Blue represent the nostalgic feeling of feeling like in home once again. And I think we all need that feeling, and we are looking for it constantly. It also can be attached to the fact of being no one (to others) makes u feel more like someone. Being capable of leave everything that blinds you, everything that never was part of your inner being to become the most truly self.
that's exactly the point of the video though lol
Not really. You're right that there's a deeper meaning and upon reading the books, there is, but it's not about necessarily going home.
Zima Blue is about abandoning the impossible ideal of perfection and embracing ones imperfect/fallible nature, which reflects our individual truths.
That we may be limited and thus not be able to do everything, but it helps us select what is important and remove from ourselves what is not important.
Thus, when Zima found what makes him happy, he discards everything else.
From our and the audience's point of view, it is a sacrifice, but the journalist, Claire, understands that it is not a sacrifice, but a release from unecessary burdens.
Zima achieved what it means to be in a state of unending happiness
I thought it had a nice Candide (by Voltaire) ring to it. Eventually you can strive all you want, but might be better off just tending your garden.
This episode made me cry.
Everything was perfect. His quest to find himself. Growth and prosperity through devotion and passion for his pursuit. The rise to his titular position, overlooking the universe through his mechanical eyes and taking in the vast abyss, and processing the infinity into packets. Coming full circle and reaching the apex of his truths. Only to realize, that the richest form of existence, lies in the simple routines from which he was created. Shedding his mechanical corporeal tomb and returning to the blue, from whence he came...While humans, through the pinnacle of their hubris, are left behind to toil and scratch at the why and curse the existence of their own inabilities as they on look to a God who chose to step down from his kingdom...Only waiting to be ruled again by the next. great. thing.
~Stark
Stark best comment on here
Amazing
I'm just glad you signed off at the end so we can all know it was you that typed this 🙄
Love Death and Robots is such an incredible series
Zima Blue reminded of how Gautama Buddha reached enlightenment; it wasn't through practicing intense activities but through witnessing a farmer plowing his field. I got chills watching this episode and enjoyed it thoroughly.
this 10min short with arguably fairly simplistic graphics has accomplished more than 90% of Hollywood / Netflix releases these days. Truly inspiring and refreshing to see and a reminder to us all that story telling is still the centerpiece of this visual medium.
He came back to the very first thing that gave him satisfaction. What a beautiful animated short this is.
A great explanation sir. My thoughts on it are similar, however I'd like to think of his final work as part of his death drive. I guess that "Zima Blue" color that he recognizes is akin to what our subconscious remembers of us being in our mother's womb; a peaceful state
This episode was so good
Thanks for checking out the video
Out of the whole collection Zima Blue was my absolute favorite. In one way or another, everyone wants to go back to a simpler time but some ever get the chance.
Zima Blue is our own consciusness, which is so hard for many of us to detect. We take things like breathing for granted and its such an importantly basic task for our existence. "I'm going home" is similar to "I am connecting with my maker". We can always go back home. We are not the "upgrades" we have bestowed upon ourselves. The truth lies in the simplest form of awareness.
SPOILERS: Zima Blue is Kanye
Looooooooool it works
😂😂😂
😂😂😂😂
Zima blue was subservient for generations. The only thing Kanye is a servant to is his own ego
@@andrewryan2814
True!
each of these stories could serve as big screen features with the right writing and creative team
One must imagine Sisyphus happy.
Glad to see so many other people felt as I did about this short. Beautiful, tranquil, meaningful, simple and deep. Truly something special.
Thank you for your Insight of this episode, it was my favorite of the entire series.
No problem, thanks for checking out the video
I really liked the witness!! the ending was so mind blowing haha
This anthology and this episode in particular has been some of the greatest shorts i've ever seen. All of them save a few have left a mark i feel.
That was the one and only short that I could regard as a valid piece of old school science fiction. The one where you stare at the black screen because it was a commentary upon life and the human condition. Plus there was a philosophical question asked to which there are multiple answers.
Put simply, ignorance is bliss. The less we know the better. Also, some of us revel in looking for meaning because it drives us and after a long search, he found his.
Beyond Aquila Rift has a very similar plot to an episode of the Outer Limits called the Tempest. The tempest is about a space crew that crash lands and the captain alternates between 2 realities where he must decide which one is real. At the end you find out that both realities are illusions and given to the crew by space spiders as they feed on them.
Nice, is that the 90s series or the original? Gonna give it a watch
@@heavyspoilers 1996. Season 3
Love Zima Blue and it’s creative storyline! The animation is unique, the story and the impact is has is breathtaking is awesome! 🙏 can’t wait for Season 2! By the way, what’s the name of the song in the beginning of your video? It’s really chill and wanna listen to it 😂👌
At first only Shape-Shifters could hold my attention, but then Zima Blue came on. My god... That's deep.
This is probably my favorite short from LDR. I've watched it more than any episode. It's like a marathon for your mind that all happens in like 10 minutes haha. I love what you had to say, I agree with you 100%. I was just talking to my brother this morning about the idea of AI becoming sentient. good job!
This is the only episode I take time to search for an analysis, it's very profound and moving. I understood the meaning, yet I want to confirm it here, thank you for your video. Initially I was skeptical of the ending and his claim that he was once robot, since the scene where he had surgery he had his brains in it.
No problem, thanks for checking out the video and leaving a comment
Like someone said:
The Earth is round because of one reason, after traveling around the world, the only thing we want is to go home.
Beautifully explained my friend. Keep up the good work. 🙌🙌
my favourite by far, the sentences poured from his mouths made me cry for countless times;
''My search for truth is finished at last...Im going home.''
Gorgeous animation to accompany such a brilliant short
Astute analysis 👍 I loved this short. So sick.
Always a burst of great information and brilliantly worded videos. Thanks for the wonderful videos
Much appreciated, thanks for taking time to leave a comment and chat in the premiere
All day I had been binge watching the series until clocking out. Then some errands kept me busy for the next 3 hrs. Finally getting home. I played the first story of LDandR for my roommate. He enjoyed it. Then I smoked a bowl. 10 minutes go by and go to my room to watch the next up story from where I left off. "Zima Blue". Not knowing what to expect I hit play. Then my high hit. I think even without the high, I still would have been blown away. My heart was racing. True masterpiece
I will immerse myself... my heart fell on the floor
So there’s painting called swimming pool which is just a huge blue painting and the color was invented by the artist and the color is called Klein blue
Loooooool is that true?
It's true
I think the overall message was a lot more nostalgic and shows a full circle. Something like we all had that one thing we did as a child that gave us pure joy regardless of what it was. Through time we grow more assimilated to the world and essentially “upgrade” through our life cycles. But what the artist wanted to show is that it will one day come to a full circle where as you succeed at all of the things that you wanted to do; that long forgotten joy will be the thing we will strive for ultimately. The tile is simply a placeholder for the time he spent not worrying or striving for more. He is content
The art is gorgeous! One of my fav episodes
The visuals in this episode are godly. It’s so powerful i’ve never seen anything like it, it’s like the cosmos itself made this to communicate something to us. The fact that this creation came from the mind of human beings is astonishing. I’m baffled by how amazing this short film is.
watched it again, message changes everytime for me
This was such a beautiful episode. There are so many meanings I took away but what I resonated with the most is that there is no universal truth and that happiness can be achieved by completing the simplest of tasks.
The first time I watched this episode, caught my breath during the deconstruction process. It is definitely the best films I have watched, to the extent where I would just recall the episode at very random moments and just smile at its art. Although it had multiple interpretations to it, the animation and story telling were just as valuable; very touching.
I find the analogy to our lives as modern-day humans so profound: We start "simple", with nothing. Over time we learn more, we collect more along the way. Friendships, knowledge, skills, "stuff". But we search for meaning and very often don't find it. Until we let go of the "stuff" and baggage and return to a more simple way of being. We find satisfaction and fulfilment in simple tasks and pleasures.
i loved your video from intro, keep it up bro
This moment is here and now for you to live.
The message i received from Zima Blue is this:
The subject (whether it is robot, human etc.) will never be fully satisfied, no matter how much worldly things it have, money, fame, and even godlike powers etc. The subject will be fully satisfied when it does the Task it was Created for! or the reason and purpose of its creation.
This is very similar to the human nature, we will never be fully satisfied unless we truly do what we actually are created for. So everyone should really ponder about life, and get to the truth. We should ask and find out: what is our purpose in life, what our souls are created for? What is our True purpose?
"Sometimes it is difficult even for me to understand what I have become. And harder still to remember what I once was." is about the only line that addresses a major theme of the original short story - Memory. This short is profound and like many others, I keep thinking back to it. I just wish it addressed the theme of memory a bit more.
"what is my purpose?"
"you clean pools"
"HELL YEA!!!"
Came here to say this. Beat me to the punch... about one year.
Martial Arts Saying: When i began the art, a punch was just a punch and a kick was just a kick. As I learned and perfected the art, a punch became more than a punch and a kick more than a kick. Now that I have mastered the art, a punch is just a punch and a kick is just a kick . . . . .
Amazing explanation!
Thank you
As a 30-year old guy stuck in a quarter life crisis, this was incredible. It tells the story of maturity and acceptance of self.
It's same like going back to your childhood. When things were simple and natural.🙏🏼
I’m reminded of that line from “The Shawshank Redemption”: “Salvation lies within.” What we seek is inside of us.
Just like what the practice of meditation does: Look inward, what we need to see is inside. What we seek, we already have.
Its been a long time since any movie has made me cry. Wish there was more like it.
This was my favorite episode of the series so deep, profound and beautiful it stayed with me for a well after watching it. My 2nd fav was the one with the vampire and cats. That one was too much fun too watch. What a series.
I have such a long take on how this episode literally changed my life :) it’s amazing how an animated 10min short can be so meaningful
What was the song used in the background of this video?
This also reminds me of some artist like Picasso and Mondriaan. For a long time Picasso was searching for something that he lost in his drawing what he did have when he was a child. What are the universal things that devine design, that devine a portret. And Mondriaan too. Looking at things in the shadows, treas, mills. And finally coming back to lines, squares an primairy colours, with added white and black.
this ep spoke to me so much!
jesus this is simply amazing
Watched the whole thing, had a few I loved but the blue tile haunted me inside my head. Masterpiece.
When your perception becomes complex, The feeling of satisfaction for your purpose of life is not easy to attain. When your life, perception and goal is simple you get the satisfaction of doing that task or living that life to the fullest.
Why did he got obsessed with the blue tile or shape?
It got hardwired into his brain in the process of his upgradation similar to the animalistic behavior in our brain encoded throughout evolution.
Is the purpose of our life simple to live , procreate and die or beyond that?
Depends on your perception and complexity of your thoughts, which come from the place you love, the society you face and the knowledge that you are exposed to.
I feel that's why many of us don't get a feeling of satisfaction through this materialistic life.
Very well thought out explanation for this episode. If I could summarize your explanation and the meaning of the episode into one word it would be this: Catharsis.
This episode was so memorable because of how well the message got across. He had it all, fame, money, people, all the luxury in the world but lack of meaning can be a powerful thing.
this episode was truly deep , it spoke to me as a human on a level no piece of literature has ever before .
as a lyricist, i cant help it... the first thing that pops up in my head is: zima blue, a robot that's seeking truth, but what does it mean to u? finished the episode, and now im on season 2
This episode should run for an Oscar
this short animated movie is master piece
The link to citizen kane was so obvious yet so unexpected to me, I didn't think of it! Great. I like to read it this way also: since zima cannot grasp the cosmos despite his developed mind, he has to diminish the reach of his mind to a primeval/embryonic state so that the little, simple womb of his pool, becomes a universe understandable enough.
I wouldn't say he reverted to the simple robot to be 'the happiest he ever was,' but because it was the form where he felt no overwhelming and unattainable desire (in this case to find meaning). The simple robot would be incapable of feeling happiness, so I think it's more accurate to say he wanted to be less dependent, or 'hungry' and free from the weights of sentient existence. It sounds like 'happy' would be the right word here, but again, as a simple robot, that's part of the things he would be giving up. Great video btw!
just goes to show how one can fit a 2-hour film in a 10 min story... Cross-references of culture all over, packed with allusions.
since it would appear that most people noticed a kind of a sublime vibe with Zima Blue, here's my reading of it…
The very title gives the direction of this reading- BLUE is the color associated with depth and infinity, ZIMA takes its etymology from Proto-Slavic, still appearing in most of those languages as 'winter'.
For Kandinsky it's the color of spirituality- a member of the German group The Blue Rider- their focus was on the ABSTRACT, non-representational art. And that's what color gives- a mood, an atmosphere, rather than a direct reference.
Surely a direct connection with 'Klein BLUE'- Yves Klein- a French artist who, by the means of monochromatism, wanted to express a PURE IDEA- not merely a painter, he was also a performer.
Picasso himself had an entire BLUE period of work produces in the content of blues (sadness). The Blue Period is also referenced here.
The narrator (female journalist) explains how he began his career in portraiture, but he searched further, beyond; we all begin with ourselves reflecting onto others - then our gaze expands beyond to meet our spiritual being. He starts painting MURALS (walls)- in a very direct sense of an obstacle- we all tend to expand to a point of vanishing- but a sublime gesture perceives that 'vanishing' as integration with One.
A BLUE SQUARE starts to appear on his murals- an unexpected element, or rather an element irreducible to the world of Things, yet incorporated as an outcast that takes the central stage- a quest for meaning if you will. Shapes changed but the shade of blue remained (we come in different forms, but our essence is the divine-human which seeks into indefinite).
He unveils an entirely blue mural (he's wearing a long cloak keeping one safe, but also a symbol of grace and spiritual abundance)- it's that peak of the quest for the spiritual, now waterlogged. Also, another short pin from the history of art- check Malevich with his Suprematist Composition: White on White ('supremacy of pure feeling or perception').
The part where he becomes truly (truly? :D) famous flirts with the idea of spectacle today- every segment of human labor and social life somehow gets 'corrupted' by the spectacle and only as such truly lives in the HUMAN EYE.
Zima withdraws away from the public EYE in a temple that resembles ancient Egypt, a symbol of longevity after 'reshaping' himself in a more 'durable' form. This is where he himself makes himself a project of art- he's dedicated to HisART.
The scene of him entering a lava stream combines the separation of the 2 worlds with the fluid which melts all, at which point he understands how his universality is in modesty, not overexpansion. Or rather- his core, not his surface. He tracks down (or should I suggest IN) his origin. The woman (life force, however unpredictable) symbolizes technological development here- and its randomness in usage and further development. We rely on predictability to have a sense of control, however it would seem that even the technology which is 'programmed' incorporates an organic touch of its biological Creator. Most of the dystopian movies are basing their fable on a very binary disposition between techno and bio as opposites when the most intriguing momentum is the intersection of the two without any moral coloring of good vs. bad.
His BLUE obsession comes almost like an eruption of his core- the 'Zima Blue' - as the Manufacturer (the One who Creates) called it ('in the begining was the word…')!
And now for the FINALE- a spectacle it is, where the spectacle began- an ARENA- a place of combat!!! But there's only one gladiator- not to destroy, but eager to unite by means of deconstruction- there's something sublime in self-initiated annihilation- there's intent, dedication, and breakthrough. That is where we find the sacred place where scattered fragments are the opening act of yet another cycle in life. The mastery of simplification implies precursors in the form of a devoured abundance of knowledge, experience, eros, art…
On a side note, the origin of the word ART is the Greek word TECHNE (I rest everyone's case :))
…back to Pharaohs last performance. He comes out in a cape- check Marina Abramovic in her 'The Artist is Present' project.
Performance as an art form is the epitome of onetime-ness, borderline and shared experience (audience), also with the threat of limits- including the ultimate one- death itself.
Upon his immersion, we see almost a meditative transcendence- the UN-MAkiNg- it's the peeling off of everything that's redundant, excessive. Yet again, the mastery of simplification EMERGES from everything acquired up to that moment. That being one of the ways nirvana is explicated in the West. Flirting with Buddhism in this sense is a bit of a cheap trajectory unless we see it as a metaphor for the evolution of art itself; his path was that of history, of development, and at the end of enjoying the Pure Artisan- where the skill of bringing into existence (to stand outside) merges with existing itself. Or ceasing to.
The simple form doesn't birth from Simple. It's the complete being that's reduced to its essence. The reduction is a reVERSION to a simpler form.
And that is Truly a luxury today- the pursuit for meaning- some of it found on multiple levels in this beautiful tale of eschatology.