Comments on: Movie Kajillionaire Ending Discussed and Explained

By: Andrew Peters

Andrew Peters — Sun, 03 Oct 2021 05:25:07 +0000

I searched for more Gina Rodriguez movies after seeing ‘Awake’. I was wrongly expecting a heist action movie after reading the synopsis for ‘Kajillionaire’ so kept watching waiting for the final robbery. I’m glad I stayed with it.
What hasn’t been touched on is the kiss at the end.
Does this mean that Melanie is no better than the parents in that she is taking advantage of a confused, lonely, vulnerable girl from a replacement ‘mother daughter’ relationship into lesbianism?
Or is the ‘new’ Old Dolio now in charge?
We hear stories of how women’s refuges are often staffed by lesbians on the prowl for vulnerable ‘converts’ so…just sayin’/askin’.

By: Frank

Frank — Tue, 06 Jul 2021 15:53:27 +0000

This movie is a conondrum. It is well-written, well-acted and well-directed. It should be a success. But ultimately, it is not.

Why is it not a success? The bottom line is that I ended up having no emotional investment or attachment to any of the characters in the film. The film failed to make me care about the characters in it, or care about what ends up happening to them. That is a major-league flaw.

You don’t have to love the characters in a film. Hell, you can even hate them, hate them with all your heart. But, you have to feel SOMETHING for them. Love them, hate them, pity them, envy them, admire them, fear them, feel something, anything.

That’s why this film is such an enigma. The writing is clever and smart, the acting across the board is strong, and the film has a sense of style and directorial flair. There is no obvious, easy answer as to why the film completely fails to make the viewer become emotionally invested in any of the characters. It’s an absolute mystery.

Because of its’ strong points and elements, it is not fair to just summarily dismiss the film and flippantly write it off. But because it doesn’t make you care about any of the characters, the viewer ends up feeling empty and vacant at the end of the film. And that is because the film itself is empty and vacant.

The bottom line is the film fails to make you give a damn about any of the characters in it in any way, and that is a huge flaw. It is a fatal flaw. And that is why, ultimately, the film is not a success.

By: Bruce Brenneise

Bruce Brenneise — Tue, 06 Jul 2021 10:30:12 +0000

Thanks, Taylor, glad that chiming in added some cool factor somehow, haha! Consider me the typical ‘long time lurker, first time commenter’. I keep checking in every time I run low on the to-see list of ‘mind-job’ or intricate, often lesser-known gems to watch, and I keep finding great discussions of some really amazing films I might well have missed otherwise. I must have had Kajillionaire on my list for a couple months before just now getting to it, and I’m very glad I did! Anyway, consider me a fan of what you’re doing here: I’ll definitely keep tuning in.

P.S. Email me about a swap, I’m open to it! Btw, self-deprecation aside, even if you weren’t providing any other regular benefits via Patreon, many people use it to simply give back to a person or project they want to ‘keep doing the thing’. We’re conditioned in our society to think that support needs to teased out with an otherwise unobtainable transaction, but probably 9/10ths of the joy you’re ‘sparking’ for your patrons is already given freely on this website.

By: Taylor Holmes

Taylor Holmes — Tue, 06 Jul 2021 02:17:19 +0000

In reply to Bruce Brenneise.

Bruce.
I just read your comment to my 17 year old daughter – and showed her your art – and she has declared that that is the coolest thing that has come from my decidedly ‘uncool’ website. She even found a picture of you, and said, you two even look like you could be buddies! hahahah. Which has, seriously, made my month. Glad I accidentally assisted in your finding this fantastic little film. (Man how I loved this film. Oh, and don’t worry about me, no amount of hell-fury will dissuade me from this opinion. (Maybe it’ll calcify said opinion?))

Anyway – Bruce, I am currently signing up for your newsletter – and considering how to swap you for patreon benefits! hahaha. (May patreon sucks hard. To all my patreon members out there, I love you for loving me in spite of my horrific patreon love.) Nice comment… and I couldn’t agree with you more. But I also understand why some people hated this movie. Totally understand. This one balances on a knife’s edge and could fall a kajillion (snicker) different directions. And you are right, I’m sure, that those that ‘hated’ it, did so because of something deeply personal, and deeply cross-grained for them. Maybe it was way too close to home in one way or another. Maybe parents that hurt them, or didn’t jive well with society in general. Interesting really. I could talk about this movie all night long.

Thanks for the very kind words sir. I would like to know how you found Kajillionaire on my site. This website is a bit of a nightmare to navigate, and Kajillionaire has fallen off the front page. Just curious. Take care.

By: Bruce Brenneise

Bruce Brenneise — Tue, 06 Jul 2021 00:56:40 +0000

Brilliant movie I probably would have missed if not for your review! I really have to wonder just what it is about this movie that is setting off the folks who hated it. Despite what they’re saying about it being simplistic or a waste of time, one doubts they’d have bothered to come on here to comment if their antipathy didn’t go deeper than that. It struck a nerve. Speaking as an artist myself, ‘striking a nerve’ is certainly just as much a success as eliciting any other strong emotion. Perhaps it’s that it’s simply unnerving to see a dark mirror to one’s own bitter failures (and response to failure) through the ‘parents’ in this film.

By: Taylor Holmes

Taylor Holmes — Sun, 13 Jun 2021 19:18:41 +0000

In reply to chloe.

Hey Chloe,
Love the comment. You obviously are a brilliant troll, or someone with exquisitely horrible taste! Hahaha. No really, it seems like you and I would have a blast going at it over various movies… The Matrix – t: über! C: car crash! The One I Love – t: epiphanic! C: poser!! Killing of a Sacred Deer – t: woah! C: hack!

And I’d laugh after each pronouncement for sure. But we’d be best friends for sure – if you didn’t claw my eyes out that is.

Thanks for swinging by and denigrating one of my favorite movies in the past 3 years.

Stay in touch Chloe!
Kisses.

By: chloe

chloe — Sun, 13 Jun 2021 15:39:38 +0000

Absolutely horrific movie and I’m only leaving a comment because positive reviews for this seem like a grift themselves. Like a movie you make fresh in art school with its lack of subtlety. I know pink bubbles look great but then make it a painting. Glad the absurdly in your face music made it obvious what we were meant to be feeling otherwise I wouldn’t have picked up on the terrible acting. Horrific.

By: Erika

Erika — Tue, 08 Jun 2021 01:22:03 +0000

Oh, Taylor! You kept talking about how good this film was, but yeah I was too cheap to rent it. I saw it to day and was blown away. It is not a ‘perfect’ film, but it is a damn good one. The people who don’t get it are probably people who don’t pick up on the nuances of relationships, what’s said, what’s not said. Let’s take the parents, two very damaged people. Do we know why…no, but that’s not entirely the point. What we can gather from the first 20 minutes of this movie is that Old Dolio’s parents damaged hearts, minds, body has passed to their daughter as if she had a target on her head. The scene where Old Dolio is getting a massage (masseuse isn’t even touching her) and almost has a panic attack when her parents show up for the ‘refund’. What’s very clear is that this young woman either has not had love or has had abuse. We don’t know which one it is, some might say with children it’s one and the same.

I also like the scene where Melanie is on the phone with her mom, who called her when she arrives back in California ( is that where they are from?) and you see her dynamic with her mom. We can all relate to a mom or family member on a shopping channel talking to you, but watching out for that next today’s special. I think when she talks to her mom after the big tremor, we see a little more sensitivity and caring in Melanie’s conversation with her mom. Her mother is a ‘mom’ not perfect, but damn she calls her daughter and she gives gifts. Melanie is smart and she is picking up on the fact that Old Dolio’s family is shady as hell. They say they don’t want to live like Kajillionaries, but the first taste of money they get, they put it on a hot tub, they know they can’t afford. Why not pay the rent? I think they are full of shit. I think that they tried seizing the day and failed at it, so now seizing the day is BAD. That’s like saying I went to the Indian restaurant up the street and got food poisoning, so yeah, Indian Food BAD ALL OF IT EVERYWHERE. The ending of the movie shows a slight bit of promise. Not wrapped up in a bow tie, but like how life works, promise. Just a taste and you got to go figure out the rest your own damn self. I could go on and on, because this movie resonated with me. I will watch this one again and again and hopefully pick up on even more gems, that I missed before. Taylor sorry for the salty language, but it’s been a rough day in Texas, at least for me anyway.

By: Taylor Holmes

Taylor Holmes — Tue, 09 Feb 2021 01:11:29 +0000

In reply to Martin Mull. I disagree 100%. I hope I keep entrapping people into watching it, over. And over. And over again. hehehehe. No, really, I'm being serious here! hehehe.