Could Lost the heroes of the cult series Lost: The Meaning Of The Ending Of The Series, The Explanation Of The Final Film
Country: USA
Genre: fantasy, thriller, detective
Year of production: 2004-2010
Director: Jack Bender, Stephen Williams
Cast: Matthew Fox, Evangeline Lilly, Josh Holloway, Terry O’Quinn, Naveen Andrews
The series “Lost” (original title Lost) was released in 2004, and won more than 100 prestigious awards. The project received a positive response from both the audience and film critics, which happens infrequently. Moreover, Lost is considered one of the most expensive television series.
The paradox is that Lost’s ending disappointed many fans who didn’t understand the denouement. Let’s try to understand the meaning of the content of the series and give an unambiguous explanation for the finale of this story.
What is the series about
The overall idea of the series Lost is very simple, but at the same time excitingly interesting. Before proceeding to decipher and parse the hidden meaning, let’s make a short description of the film.
So, the storyline begins with the crash of the Oceanic airliner, which was on flight 815 from Sydney to Los Angeles. The plane crashed on a deserted island, and the passengers, who were lucky enough to survive the crash, are forced to fight for their survival.
Matthew Fox (Jack Shepard) and Evangeline Lilly (Kate Austin)
These are different people, with their own problems, who were not even familiar with each other before. However, all passengers have their own skeletons in the closet, which are revealed as events unfold. In general, the series Lost has two storylines. One main one, connected with the events on the island and around it. The second is the fate of a single hero.
The mystical component can be traced almost immediately. For example, Jack Locke, a wheelchair user, unexpectedly begins to walk. However, the mysteries don’t end there. It soon becomes clear that there are other people on the island. This is Desmond, the only inhabitant of the mysterious bunker – the scientific station “Swan”. Daniel Russo is a savage woman who sends signals on the air.
Subsequently, it turns out that the island has a whole scientific base of the Dharma company, which conducts experiments here with space and time. There is also an incomprehensible black smoke that destroys everyone and everything.
The series finale was ambiguous. Here events are divided into two realities. In one of them, the surgeon Jack is drawn into the confrontation between Good and Evil, kills black smoke, but dies himself. By the way, this scene repeats the beginning of the series, when Jack comes to his senses after a plane crash.
The second reality gathers all the participants in the story in the church, where a memorial service for Jack’s father is to take place. However, the coffin is empty, and the “dead” himself is among those present. People remember the island and go towards the light, which personifies the afterlife.
It was this ending that disappointed fans of the series Lost. The producers very skillfully twisted the intrigue, supplementing the main line of the series with various branches, creating new mysteries. At the same time, the end comes down to the fact that all the participants in the story died: some earlier, others later. Is it really? Let’s try to find a solution.
Ending explanation
It should be noted right away that the meaning of the ending of the series “Lost” comes down to death. Yes, all participants in this story died. The church where they gathered is a kind of Purgatory, from where the path to the afterlife opens.
Remarkably, the creators of the series wrote the final part almost immediately after the release of the pilot episode. Therefore, the main storyline is only a twisted guiding thread that connects the beginning and the end. Let it be a little tight.
Frame from the series.
At the same time, the Lost universe is much wider than such a simple explanation. For example, Evangeline Lilly, who played the role of Kate, commented on the ending of the series at the Dragon Con festival. According to the actress, the series attracted viewers with its philosophical concept. In each series, the viewer received another riddle that could be discussed among friends or like-minded people. At the same time, the interpretation of the question posed by the screenwriters often turned out to be philosophical.
According to the actress, this is exactly what the ending of the story should have been. Evangeline likens the series Lost to a work of art that is difficult to perceive unambiguously. Each person creates his own impression of what he sees, and he finds personal, only he understandable answers to questions.
Therefore, there is no unambiguous ending to the series “Lost”. Each viewer can perceive the ending in their own way. Moreover, one of the people who participated in writing the script commented on the ending as follows: “The island is real, and the events taking place on it, too.”
Based on this formulation of the question, then Jack could well have ended up in the church after he was mortally wounded in a fight with black smoke. After all, his father unequivocally told him that all people die, some earlier, others later, but they always end up together. Such an explanation of the ending will definitely appeal to viewers who did not like the banal ending. The intrigue can be maintained and maintained by finding Easter eggs with each viewing that will help to get to the bottom of the truth.
The meaning of the series “Staying alive”
If you do not touch on the end of the Lost series, then the meaning here is deep and multifaceted. The scriptwriters very subtly beat the age-old confrontation between science and religion, making many references to biblical motifs. If we take as a basis that the island is real, then this is a kind of lighthouse that maintains the balance of the forces of Good and Evil throughout the world. Jacob and Barry are brothers who appeared on the island millennia ago. The first personifies the Light, and strives to make the world a better place. The second is black smoke, which very accurately reflects the true essence of the forces of Evil.
Frame from the film.
It is between them that there is a confrontation, but according to the rules of the game, they cannot kill each other. Then third parties come into play. These are people who turned out to be random hostages of the island and Dharma employees trying to comprehend the secrets of the universe. These people take the side of Jacob or Barry, often become mere puppets in the wrong hands. However, their role in this story is important, because it was Jack who was able to destroy Barry when the island’s light went out and the black smoke became mortal.
Did good prevail in this case? That is unlikely. The world must be kept in balance. Therefore, the place of black smoke must surely be taken by someone else, for example, Benjamin Linus, who did not enter the church in the finale, which means that his mission on Earth has not yet been completed.
However, based on the general concept of the series, another meaning can be drawn. In particular, these are the problems of ordinary people who died on the island in different years. Sudden death always implies unfinished earthly affairs, which prevents the soul from freely moving to the afterlife. In favor of this alignment is the fact that during the crash of the liner, some passengers died. Only troubled characters survived, with unfinished business.
For example:
- Jack Sheppard never got along with his father, and did not even have time to bury him;
- James Ford (Sawyer) lived the life of a thief but always wanted to change;
- Charlie had drug problems;
- Hurley hit a big jackpot in the lottery, so these numbers followed him everywhere;
- Jin and Sung Kwon couldn’t get along;
- John Locke became an invalid and dreamed of getting up from his tired chair;
- Claire was supposed to give birth to a child, but did not have time due to a plane crash.
All the characters whose stories intersect in the storyline of the series Lost have such problems. And interestingly, all problems were solved. No wonder Locke said that the island can give everything you need. However, this is not a place of fulfillment of desires, where everything happens at the snap of a finger. The island is just a beacon that gathered people in one place. They went each their way, helping each other. By and large, each of the heroes of the series is an egoist, with his own ambitions, always spitting on the opinions of other people. The island gave everyone their chance for correction and the opportunity to go through life’s path to the end.
Frame from the series.
In fact, the events of the series can take place entirely in the afterlife. 6 seasons of Lost is a brief moment when the soul leaves the body and goes on. At this moment, a person is in limbo between life and death. And in this “nowhere” there is an island that attracts confused souls, giving them a chance, even in a parallel reality, to correct their mistakes, completely cleanse themselves of sins and accept their fate. And to do this is absolutely ilma sincerely. This may be the main point of the series “Lost”.