Being There (1979)

Written November 27th, 2017

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  Being There is a 1979 film directed by Hal Ashby based off of the 1970 novel of the same name by Jerzy Kosinki. It follows a man named Chance also known by his given alias Chauncey Gardener, Chance is shown to have a sort of unspecified mental illness but based on his actions and movements it can be safely assumed that Chance has a form of Autism. After being forced to leave the house he had grown up in, Chance is left to wander the streets of Washington D.C. until he is picked up by the spouse of a rich industrialist and soon enough becomes an influential political figure due to others misinterpreting what he says having some philosophical undertones. When Chance meets the president tells him there will be growth in the garden in the springtime, the president interprets his words that there will be economical growth in due time when we the audience know Chance is literally talking about how spring is the best time for a garden to grow.

	While the majority of the satire in this film mainly regards the mass consumption of television and the media within American society, something that still happens to be prevalent after 38 years, the movie's ending. The final scene is of Benjamin Rand's funeral, the president gives a eulogy regarding the former billionaire as his casket is carried up to what is supposedly Ben's final resting place, a pyramid with an all seeing eye. As they carry the casket the pallbearers quietly discuss backing mister Chauncey Gardener as the next presidential candidate.   Considering this along with an earlier scene where the president arranges a visit to the Rand estate to talk with Ben and get some political advice regarding his presidency and the economy, it is possible that this may be a hidden theme regarding the shadow government theory, a conspiracy regarding that political power is not being held by publicly elected representatives, but rather private and rich individuals who are running things from behind the scenes
	
	Amidst all of this, Chance decides to go for a walk into the forest during the funeral ceremony, we then see a shot of chance walking in the foreground with a river behind him and the Rand estate looming over in the background. Chance absentmindedly walks right into the river but he continues to walk onto the surface of the water until he suddenly stops and dips his umbrella into the water, which shows that the river is not shallow, Chance then stands back up looking up at the estate and continues walking over water as we close with the president utter the words, "life is a state of mind."
	
	This final scene is something that has been constantly debated on amongst hardcore enthusiasts, with Hal Ashby merely stating in an interview shortly after the film's that the meaning behind Chance walking on water is up to the viewer's interpretation. Since walking on water makes us draw a subconscious connection towards Jesus Christ, many have come to the conclusion that the scene is meant to symbolize Chance as a Christ like figure, however if that were to be the case then surely there would have been other scenes in the movie that could hint at this symbolism rather than just that one scene. The final words spoken in Being There was "life is a state of mind," this phrase itself could sum up the symbolism of Chance walking on water. Chance's state of mind is that he has an incredibly simplistic or almost no state at all, he has now inherited the fortune of a billionaire and could become the next president of the United States without even knowing it, Chance has managed to achieve so much all because he does not understand his limitations or rather he lacks any sense of limitation. Therefore walking on water is a possibility to Chance as his simple state of mind does not recognize how impossible it truly is.