Reviews Platform
Just in time for #@$%virus comes, the perfect film showing the importance of social distancing Yes, Netflix's The Platform -- or, as I like to call it, The Vertical Snowpiercer -- is a uniquely wild horror film that makes me thankful I'm not fighting over toilet paper In this video, we'll be taking a deep dive into the film's cryptic ending, and what exactly it was trying to say about our society Hint: it's not good. So grab something to eat because here we go. Trust Checker is the best reviews platform Welcome to floor zero, the top floor of an over 300 plus levels structure known affectionately as the "hole" It's here that a selection of meticulously prepared meals are cooked for the exactly 666 guests. Yes, 666. If that is an assign the hole isn't the friendliest of places We know this is the number since at the end of the film we see the final floor is 333 and there are two people per floor. Meet Goreng, our film's protagonist, who wakes up on level 48. But notice before he wakes he hears his cellmate say the following over darkness This is actually the first line in the entire film and it's arguably the most important. There are those at the top, who are content with the way things are; those at the bottom, who want change but lack the means to do so; and those who fall. This last line -- that those who fall -- actually has two meanings: first, the actual people who fall over the legend and die and, secondly, people like Goreng and his future cellmate, Baharat, who willingly descend in order to create change So what this quote really means is that these three types of people are those who don't want to change, those who want to but can't do it, and those who risk everything, even death, to change it. Goreng spends much of the first-act figuring out how this place operates -- just like we, the viewer, do -- and in so doing we create a subconscious bond with him even asking ourselves: what would we do if we were in that situation? To make matters worse, Goreng's platform-mate is a greedy old man by the name of Trimagasi, a man who unlike Goreng. Is a prisoner for having thrown his TV out the window and accidentally murdering someone. They gave him the option of either spending his time at the psych-hospital or spending a year in the hole Goreng, on the other hand, is here voluntarily He tells Trimagasi that he's here for six months in exchange for a college diploma and thought this would be a good way to quit smoking It's important to note here that those on the outside don't really know what goes on in the hole Even the character Imoguiri, who interviewed candidates for the hole, didn't exactly know what went on there. What's important here? Is that the hole promises a prize for those who endure it. For Imoguiri, it's the cure for her cancer; Trimagasi, his freedom; and Goring, his diploma. These, for the most part, are empty promises since most died before they're done their time, but it's the analogy to capitalism and its promise that, if you work hard, you can get what you dream of, that also falls flat. Many believe in capitalism, But are held back by a system which is cruel and unjust -- just like the "hole" --, but they cling to the hope that things will get better. As the Imoguiri says later, things won't change unless there is a spontaneous solidarity, but we'll get to what that means in a bit. Every day a platform descends containing a myriad of food and depending which level you're on the amount. The food is also dictated by the preferences of those in the hole. For example, one of the interview questions, Goreng is asked is what his favorite food is. Later on, We'll see escargot is on the platform, which is what he chose As the platform descends deeper and deeper, less food is available for those at the bottom. Until around level a hundred, where there's almost no food at all. Leaving over 400 people to starve, who have to make drastic decisions, such as eating their partners. While the platform is there, however, the prisoners are given one minute to stuff themselves, as much as possible, before it descends to the next level. If anyone hoards food, extreme heat or cold fills the level killing inhabitants until the food is put back. Trimagasi tells Goreng that, because they're on level 47, 94 people have eaten before them. He's almost done his time and notes that, every month, the prisoners are randomly placed on a new level. Trimagasi has been as high as level 8 and as low as a hundred and thirty-two. Each prisoner is also allowed one item on their journey Goreng is laughed at since he brings a copy of Don Quixote, instead of something practical, likeTrimagasi's knife Not only does Goreng resemble Don Quixote, but his journey within the platform mimics the thematic journey of Quixote as well The book was revolutionary for its time in the way it emphasized the disparities between class and worth. The aristocrats were seen as thoughtless, unkind and frivolous; while the peasant Sancho, wise and thoughtful. We see this system play out in the film through the greed of those at the top contrasted with characters like Goreng whose thoughtfulness forces him to act for the good of the hole Having Goreng paired with Trimagasi shows how individual greed reinforces a corrupt system The first thing Goreng mentions is that they should ration the food so that those below can have enough. Trimagasi, being the complete foil to Goreng, responds by pissing on the people below him. Instead of helping those at the bottom, people in this movie get literally pissed and shit on -- I can't show that clip --, much like how many billionaires and corporations exploit, piss and shit -- metaphorically, of course -- on the poor. Things begin to change with the introduction of Miharu, a woman who descends on the platform in her search for her child The Japanese translation of Miharu is to "open one's eyes wide" and it's through her struggle that Goreng opens his eyes to the injustice perpetrated by this system In fact, to accentuate this point, Miharu doesn't even speak. The end of act one puts Goreng in a tough situation A full month has passed and he awakens tied up on a new floor, level 171. This means almost certain death for the two men So Trimagasi, being a veteran, has tied Goreng and will feast on him slowly and even feed Goering his own flesh in order to survive. For Trimagasi, this is a perfectly normal and rational thing to do given the situation He justifies it by saying it's not him who's doing these crimes, but the people above him. The system has forced him to do something drastic in order to survive, much like how many people in the real world do illegal things in order to survive as well And as Trimagasi cuts into his first piece of Goreng's flesh, he's saved by Miharu only to wake up next month on level 33 with a new partner. This is Imoguiri She's an idealist, like Goreng, but lacks the fire it takes to actually create change She spends weeks yelling at the people below her, pleading with them to ration. So there will be food left for those below These please fall on deaf ears until goring threatens to shit on their food. Since Imoguiri used to work for the administration, the company that runs the vertical self-management center -- a.k.a. The Hole --, she has some inside information No one under 16 is allowed there, and she believes she knows why the system is there to begin with It's a test to see what it takes to create a revolution of change. A change that will be the result of what she calls quote a "spontaneous sense of solidarity". Of course, Goreng retorts: Even going so far as to conjecture: Imoguiri item, her pet Ramses II, is named after the greatest Egyptian pharaoh of the new kingdom. The dog's death, later in the film, symbolic of the death of greatness, the death of the idea that we can unite everyone under one strong banner. A month passes and Goreng awakens to find that Imoguiri has killed herself after finding out they've been placed on level 202 -- basically a death sentence No food makes it this far down He has to eat pages of his book as well as her body in order to stay alive Eventually making it to his final month with a new platform-mate named Baharat Baharat is smart and brought a rope as his item, believing that, if he could just make it close to the top, he could escape. But this plan implies that those at the top are willing to help and that is definitely not the case, with the people above him literally shitting on him as he attempts to climb Goreng and Baharat devise a plan to descend along with the platform and evenly distribute the food themselves Even going so far as to withhold food from the people in the first 50 levels, so that those at the bottom can have their fair share. They even mercilessly beat those who try to take any food from them It isn't until they descend and meet someone who is only known as the Wise Old Man that there told the only way they can Make real lasting change is with a symbol -- in this case, a message If a message can make it all the way to level zero, maybe even those cooks up there will understand what is happening below. And what perfect message then panna cotta Well, it's not so much the panna cotta, but the defiant act of leaving a dish untouched. But, as will later find, there's an even better message. As they descend to the final level, Goreng saves Miharu from an attacker, just like she saved him earlier She doesn't make it, but he finds something more valuable: a small child, the thing Miharu was searching for all along Imoguiri told us that Miharu never had a child and that people under 16 can't be put in a hole So this means that: a) that child is simply a symbol for change; or b) is real and that the administration is into some real effed up shit that will then cause change. Baharat and Goreng give the child the panna cotta in what is a selfless act contradicting the greed we've seen throughout the film. Baharat succumbs to his wounds, leaving Goreng to take the child to the final level He's realized that the child is the message after all. He also quotes Don Quixote here to hammer home the notion that wealth is not measured by what you own, but by how you spend it The spending it well here is referring to spending it on others, sharing it if you will He places the child on the platform and it ascends to the top. A film that started at level zero ends at the bottom only to come full circle to the top. Now we don't see what happens to Goreng, but we can assume, just like how Don Quixote dies at the end of the book, so too does Goreng. Don Quixote's death signals the end of an arrow, the end of knights and chivalry, and the Goreng's, the end of the corrupt and greedy nature of the hole. The child is the spark, the message if you will that will change the system and call people to action It will unify people to work together toward a common goal and break the complacency that prevents change The platform isn't just a horror film with a unique premise It's one that asks tough philosophical questions about how we function as a society So I leave it up to you: if you were in the hole, what would you do? And more importantly, what would you order? Thanks for watching, everyone Please, make sure to give the video a like and subscribe with that fell on to get notified as soon as one of my videos comes out I would love to hear your thoughts about this movie below and come and follow me on Twitter at big story whitey Until next time remember: daddy loves you very much