Beau Is Afraid Explained | Ending Explained 

Hope my research and ideas help you out and offer some new insights! What were your thoughts and ideas around Beau Is Afraid? I would love to discuss! Let me know below!

Walking out of the theatre in silence while you see people doing the same on screen was surreal

Personally I really enjoy the foreshadowing at the beginning where a mom takes a controller for an rc boat away from her son and the toy boat flips . I thought it was a good way to summarize this movie before you even watch it.

I really like how beau is asking for help right before his boat flips, and the camera cuts to people with popcorn and drinks, just like us. And as he is crying for help the audience just watches and treats it as spectacle. Kinda a commentary how there are very obvious signs of mental illness and a need for help in front of us, but we just don’t do anything.

I don't know if it has already been mentioned, but when Beau's boat collapses and people start to leave, you hear the same dialogues as when Beau was born. A fair way of saying that he will never have happiness because it is a constant cycle of anxiety, generational trauma and schizophrenia.

Very solid explanation! One thing stuck to my mind after watching Beau, and it was the successes of his mother. The film showed Mona’s accomplishments in a timeline that had Beau’s picture in some of the advertisement magazines. If I can recall correctly, she had businesses that had to do with medications, shelters, and therapy. All of which Beau had to partake in without knowing his mother was the supplier of all those things in his life. His therapist was her friend, who then specifically prescribed Beau with medication her company put out, and he lived in the shelter she owned. I believe it was Mona’s heartbreaking plan to see if Beau’s love for her was strong enough to overcome his mental state of mind by visiting her in a timely manner. Once her plan failed, staging her death was the only way to bring him home sooner. Not to mention… the paid death of his caretaker/housekeeper Martha (who probably was the only one of his life who showed him true love) was the reason for his aggression towards his attempt to strangle his mother. Not sure if my thoughts make sense after all the emotions I went through during this watch, but just wanted to leave some food for thought. Overall, I loved this movie and felt so bad for Beau. Joaquin is THEE man!

Here are some things I noticed about the film as well. Am I the only one who thinks there was some childhood sexual abuse towards Beau? The way she looked and spoke to him while laying in bed, the explicit description of sex she told him as a child, her seemingly being envious of Elaine who Beau is attracted to. It would also explain his fear of sex in adulthood due to the trauma of sexual abuse. I also noticed there's a LOT of trauma/fear around water throughout the film. There's the scene where she's getting angry with child Beau at bath time - perhaps she tried drowning him? There's also a lot of people taking pills in this film, other than Beau. Perhaps saying how prescription drug abuse is very prominent? I'm not sure. In his mum's office, you also see a thing about a shelter that looks just like the place Beau lives. This could represent how she is "sheltering" him from the real world and how she tries to come across as a caring person to the outside world, when she is actually abusive. There's also a lot about Beau being filmed without his knowledge. This is a classic sign of schizophrenia - the feeling of constantly being watched and having your mind read. Real patients with Schizophrenia have even described and illustrated machines that read their minds and film them.

Mona, Beau’s Mother, controls every aspect of his life; Including Beau’s free will. Beau “incriminates” himself by simply having his own individual needs and boundaries outside his mother’s control. Mona, like all narcissist or psycho/sociopaths, view relationships as objects or tools to be used, including her own children. Abuse by people with these disorders happen in a cycle; which causes their victim’s personality to be eroded, their emotions disconnected, and doubts about their own reality. Mona, is a CEO of a mega corporation with her company’s logo on everything in Beau’s apartment; in which she is able to control Beau’s life in a “Truman Show” like way. Beau is constantly “incriminating” himself throughout the movie; by the end, he’s pleading with Mona to take him back. Essentially starting the cycle of malignant narcissistic abuse over and over again.

It was great to see a movie that makes us ask "What does this mean?" Rather than "Why was this made?"

Overall I feel like Beau is unaware of actual danger. Beau had absolutely no concern for the brown recluse, running through the glass door, the ppl in the woods, the guy that’s tracking him, his mother’s lies, or the dark cave and waters. He has no actual understanding of himself or the world around him. Only his fears and what his mother told him. He is on a journey in a cycle of fear, guilt, and death.

not much people are talking the symbolism of liquid and water, which most pivotal scene has. even Ari mentioned in a Q&A that the ending was supposed to feel like ejaculation, and that Beau has been wanting an orgasm his whole life. from the baby being surrounded by the liquid in the womb, to the therapist asking Beau about going back to a poisoned well to drink its water, the lack of water while swallowing pills, the bath scene, the paint scene, Beau's imaginary family and himself being drowned, Elaine dying after Beau ejaculates, Mona strangled and falling into a small aquarium with no water, and of course the final trial. it's almost like the presence of liquid symbolizes Mona's overbearing poisoned love that ultimately drowned Beau. also with every death in the movie, the relationship becomes more and more personal. from the Birthday Boy Stab Man victims on TV, to the death of presumably his neighbours, to Toni (someone Beau thought he can be friends with), to the 'father' who died on top of Mona, the 'father' who got shot, Elaine, Mona, and finally Beau. every death becomes increasingly more personal to Beau.

It was crazy how they all worked for MW too. Also the Father’s name was Harry Wasserman. The trial scene was so traumatizing because of the fact that the one person who was on his side ultimately gets killed because they only cared about the loud voice from Mona’s attorney.

I don’t know if it’s sad or exciting to say that I’ve never resonated with a movie like I did this one. While some beats of Beau’s life may not be exact to mine, the depiction of constant anxiety, dread, and guilt is so accurate. After watching it all I could think of is “wow that movie felt personal… like someone just spilled all of their anxieties out for the world to see”

One of my favorite parts is when he’s on the phone and Jeeves is running around. It’s both hilarious and terrifying. It’s so odd because it’s funny but the guy is really physically intimidating and you can see how afraid Beau is.

I think that everything after Beau falling asleep on his mother's couch was a dream that ultimately symbolizes that Beau will never escape his feelings of guilt and his anxiety. It starts as a teenager like 'wet dream' and after his climax turns into a nightmare ending when he is on trial in front of the nameless people who constantly judge an anxious person. I loved this movie, but will need to watch it many more times.

This breakdown is excellent, thank you for doing this! I just watched Beau this afternoon and I'm still processing it. I think I may watch it again, but I'll mention two other things I noticed: - All the posters, graffiti and signs around Beau's neighbourhood and apartment have all negative sexual connotations. I remember there being a sign in one scene that said "Death by Fucking", possibly alluding to what happens later with Elaine? -Along with the themes of generational trauma reminiscent of Hereditary, the way the defense lawyer dies in the final scene (falling face first into a rock) definitely reminded me of Midsommar

The Truman show if it was a horror movie

this is a top tier breakdown. For a movie that so harshly divides its audience, it’s refreshing to see such a sharp take on a film that I feel, for the bullets you articulate, IS an unironic masterwork; at the very least for the points you’ve made clear. You’ve earned a new subscriber 🤝

I’ve seen the film twice, on IMAX, and have seen several reviews - and I must say this is the best breakdown of the plot I’ve seen. It was almost like a professional therapy session, so insightful and perceptive. Thank you for doing this. You’re very good at what you do👏

My interpretation is very heavy: Beau is the result of a rape, and his mother was a child when she was raped. I explain: People sexually abused in childhood have a heavy relationship with guilt. It's common to feel guilt for having been abused, as was my case. The key scene is Beau's bath, where he's a little kid and he looks in the mirror, and there's that girl from the Ship giving him a bath, who is actually Mona, a premature mother, giving Beau a bath. Something that reinforces this: for a child, his sexual abuser's penis is giant and hurts like in the movie. Mona hates and loves Beau at the same time because, even though he is her beloved son, he is still a reminder and a fruit of her greatest suffering. She did the best she could. Beau's key feeling is guilt, because he unconsciously knows that for him to exist, his mother had to suffer a lot. There's a lot more to it, like Mona's company focusing on security products because she wanted to protect Beau from what happened to her. The sex Beau had with the girl on the Ship is an Oedipus analogy. Mona wanted to castrate her son for fear of him abusing other girls as they had done to her, due to a conflicted relationship she has with the male figure. There's still a lot to say. What do you think?

Pretty spot on, fav guy was the HELP ME HELP ME HELP ME HELP ME. Also I don’t think you touched on how they all worked for his mom, could see them in that montage pic. Also love the play experience / bleed into the audience - kinda did that to us with the credits as they left the stadium and we left the theatre.

Lukas, your analysis is dead on! Having worked on that movie as the Dolly grip(camera movements), I can tell you that it was the best ( ok, top 2) films of my career. Ari is super good and cool, Joaquin is a class, super nice actor, all the cast were brilliant,and the photography was exceptional! I am glad you loved it. Patrick

Watched it again for the second time in three days and was struck much more by the theme of “guilt.” After my first vowing I perceived the movie as being much more about fear and anxiety but on the second time around, I feel like it’s more pervasively about the negative consequences of feelings of guilt and shame.

So I like ur break down a lot, one thing I noticed was the motif of water, and the emphasis on how he has to take the medication with water, and with him not having done so in a timely manner, I think is what sent him through this mushroom trip spiral, bcz even at the end of the film he died by drowning and when he read the side effects it said death as well, so I think that’s what ultimately caused his death and gives purpose to the trippy journey he goes through, it’s like some twisted dark ego death

First off, I can’t believe I am writing something this horrendous, but here is my interpretation. Beau’s father, was a man with mental illness (recall: “I’m so sorry for what your daddy past down to you”) that raped Beau’s mother. The scenes of the bathtub and the attic are an analogy for how the truth of Beau’s conception is suffocating him in guilt (he feels guilty having been born, due to a rape). The tub shows the feelings of drowning and the attic being the thought always at the forefront of his mind. The penis monster in the attic was an example of his father (rapist). Beau’s flash backs to his youth on the Yatch kept some cohesive narrative as to his life choices. His choices of apstinance and loyalty to the Yatch girl. The story entertwined the Yatch girl grown up at Beau’s mothers house as either spectacle or a way to make a cohesive story, however her death I would say is purely spectacle like the mid movie orchestration of how Beau’s life could have been if he had 3 son’s. Likely the Yatch girl was trying to rob Beau’s mother and tried to pull off robbing with the love seen which we’re left not knowing if it’s genuine or not. Often we the viewer get the impression that Beau’s self awareness of his mental illness and oversized testicals (a running joke) are what stops him from being able to function in a intimate relationship. I think the caregiving part of the movie (the older couple that nurses him) was only spectacle of how Beau was taken in by other family after the car accident. Also, I think the twist at the end of the movie where Beau’s mother is alive is just an analogy for the kind of outlandish guilt and anxiety one could put on themself for the thought or action of fornicating in their recently deceased mother’s bed (one of many anxiety provoking scenarios Beau’s mind is apart of). Also, his provoking anxiety doesn’t hold back as it simulates the scenario of his mother talking down to him to a point which angers him to choke her - which further is an example of the anxiety thoughts he could of had if this hypothetical fantasy happened in his head. Also, mentioning another important part - Beau saying he felt forced to show love to his mother (which is a main reason he feels guilt). I can’t figure out the army guy’s part and why he resurrected and stabbed the penis monster at the end; possibly merely as spectacle for Beau’s hatred of his father. Also, the paint drinking girl, I also have no clue about; but in short I’d say: this movie is about a mentally ill man and his every anxiety inducing thought shown cranked up to 10 and on steroids purely as a cinematic Spectacle of the feelings of anxiety related mental illness caused by hereditary traits, and a rapist father. The movie is both a comedy and a horror movie, and not an Ari movie without shocking imagery.

Another movie like this and I’m Thinking of Ending Things is “Men”. It’s symbolizes and showcases a woman’s trauma when she’s on vacation. There’s a scene towards the end that’s it’s just nuts, probably even crazier to Beau is Afraid.

I was most confused by Elaine dying after they had sex. My theory is she's also a mirror of Beau. Her mom seems also abusive and overprotective and maybe she had the same story told that she would die on climax. When they get into bed, she also says ''it's been a long time''. But she is not afraid like Beau, not of her mom and not of death. You can see how unphased she is with the dead body in the cruise pool. But why does she plays the sex music from the top. Sounds random. And if it the death on climax thing was a lie for beau, why was it true for her?

This is an amazing breakdown! Just saw the film earlier today and man, it was very... unique. The whole sequence in the forest was unlike anything I've seen in a movie before. There was something so unsettling and primal about it that I can't really explain. I think the giant penis monster was meant to represent Beau's masculinity, which his mother took from him and locked away in the attic along with his father. The ending was just depressing and goes to show how people view mentally ill people as basically unworthy of salvation or help.

The movie is actually darker than it seems, and way more complicated to explain. Beau is dead and trapped in an endless loop of his horrible lives and deaths. Beau dies many times in many different life cycles; unfortunately, his brain is playing out a loop of those memories. This explains his constant state of paranoia. His mind is drifting between the different life cycles he died in. The events that seem to happen to him are tangled up in time and space. Beau is NOT the victim, but rather the perpetrator of the events of the story. The horrible things he sees around him are actually his guilty conscience and his brain is trying to cope with what he did in his other lives. He is the naked man stabbing people and got shot by the officer. He was the loud neighbor hosting a party and was killed at the same party. He died while forcing himself on someone despite being told to stop. He strangled his abusive mother to death. He abandoned his family of three sons. He skipped his mother's funeral because he was busy. He abused his adopted sister and told her to drink paint. There are many many parts that tell of the horrible things he did in the eyes of another person. In the end, he is made to answer for his actions and condemned to downing. The drowning sounds and his mother shouting at the end of the movie are continued when Beau is seen coming out of her womb at the beginning of the movie indicating the start of another life cycle. Beau is afraid because he is trapped in an endless loop of his horrible lives and he copes with that by creating different stories and narratives that put him as the victim.

One of the most important running themes I kept seeing in the film was how he was always paralyzed to do anything by fear of the results, and even though he actively tried to avoid doing anything he was just thrust into those 'worst case scenarios' that a person would draw up in their nightmares while we run these situations through our dreams. The 'exact change' guy or the 'I bet if I hold this door open it'll close right before I get to it', or 'I bet that girl is telling that guy all the worst stuff about me behind my back' and it all turns out to be the absolute most terrifying realities played out. It's just a bad dream that never ends and only gets worse for him and he just can't wake up.

Like hereditary, and midsommar , I think there are details that require decoding or at least further looks, sorta poking out of the surface. I’d love to have more insight into the decade timeline of the company on the wall in his mother’s house. It all went by so quickly but one detail i think I caught was his mother’s involvement in the building, or even the block, where beau lives. He clearly lives there for a reason, his mother’s will, perhaps to punish him, as well as to control him ultimately, and that ties into the generational trauma thing, right. There are definitely some deets buried in various shots that lay out the story, and the motivations, sorta like the journal entries and demonic textbook stuff in hereditary. Deepens the story and clarifies things a bit. I got one watch in so far. Definitely feels like a movie that will be providing rewarding rematches. Great job with the analysis, especially given that this movie is right out of the oven.

Beau's mom leaned on the rail and it broke off into the water. Maybe Beau used that pole to breathe air and escape when nobody was watching

I think Ari Aster would cry watching your review, because that's so deeply perfect. You made me change the way i see the movie. And that explanation about the penis figure... man, blows my mind how it makes sense

Question- If this whole movie was a metaphor for his life and fears communicated in story form, what was the actual story going on outside of Beau’s head? What were the people really like? What situations were really happening?

I don't have anything super smart to add to this or anything, but the ending reminded me a ton of Pink Floyd'd The Wall.

Literally just finished watching the movie. now i have to re watch it again after watching this video

Wonderfully done! Thank you fort sharing.

SPOILER ALERT. The scene with the dick-shaped giant monster in the attic still haunts me to this day.

Dude that line, “so easily predicted but never to be rembered” man that was perfectly put!

I think you pretty much nailed It dude. I just watched It a couple of hours ago AND was trying to decipher what the hell I just saw. I was thinking it's some sort of a treaty about guilt AND toxic codependence. Thanks for your input. Greetings from México!

I believe this movie is an allegory about the mother's pregnancy, everything in the movie represents the body of beau's mother that he is inside and totally attached to it, going to meet her is actually being born. As it is showed in the end part, all characters build the mother's picture hanging in the wall. There is a lot of details and different layers that builds the history, the ending scene connects with the first one when he is pulled out of the boat exploding and being drowned in the lake, which is the first scene of the movie where he gets out of her mother without breath during labour work.

I really enjoyed this interpretation! You had some really incredible points that I hadn't considered. Makes me want to rewatch the movie with these thoughts in mind. :)

Do you think Elaine worked for his mother as a child? That the whole romance and the dramatic way it was torn apart, was to instill something in him by his mother?

beautifully explained! every single moment of this film had me completely engrossed, constantly questioning the deeper meaning behind it all. honestly, it's one of those rare gems i've come across this year that managed to hold my undivided attention. ari aster has done it again! 👏🏻

This comment section is blowing my mind. All of these amazing analyses and i fully support each one. It just shows how many multifarious meanings are in this movie. I saw a comment that talked about how there may have been SA between Mona and beau which is what stood out the most to me in the film. His issues with intimacy seems like it could have stemmed from him being SA’d by his mother. The uncomfortableness he showed in his body language when interacting with his mom. Mona was jealous of Elaine, not only because her son’s attention is on another woman but her “man”. Lastly the se x scene between Elaine and beau seemed to almost set him free in a “oh this is how it feels to have sex in a consentul way with someone who’s not my mother” until she died and left him yet again traumatised just like his first sexual experience, hints… SA. He let his guard down and something bad happened even when it was something he wanted.

I was genuinely speechless walking out of the movie

i also thought that the dick monster might have meant the brief relationship with his mother and his father might have been a one night stand or some form of coercion or emotional/sexual abuse or maybe he cheated which might be why his mother’s trauma represented his father as a dick monster. also it might explain the emotional incestual relationship between his mom and beau where she says anyone would be lucky to have you or her convincing him he could never have sex because she doesnt want him to leave her for another woman and also not to subject other women to the same thing she went through with his father.

I was already enjoying the film whilst being confuse, but this breakdown really made me feel more connected to the film. The generational trauma has always been Ari Aster forte, but in Beau it was weirdly more revealing. The way his mom resents him for who has become & his dismissiveness towards her, but also overly protective of Beau that he became too dependent. How Beau's scared of her, blames her for how he lives, but only has her as his one true connection. While I might not have panick attack, but I shared Beau's lack of trust, fear of relationship, & bringing a child into this world only to ruin it with my own trauma.

I don’t know if it means anything, but did you guys notice how in the funeral, in the plaques on his mother’s wall, the fathers’s date of death is the same as the mother’s: July 12.

hey man your video is perfect. i recommended beau to my therapist before i even knew why i was recommending it to her. this helped me understand.

GAD, generational trauma, and DID are prominent mental health problems in this film. I love how this film almost requires a degree in psychology to understand. For instance, during the forest play scene, when the camera shows Beau’s eyes rapidly moving, this is indicating that Beau is dreaming during REM sleep. What is more, during the play/dream every time Beau is having a tranquil and happy dream, the dream quickly descends into a nightmare symbolizes that even the dreams of an anxious person are fraught with anxiety. The theme of an anxious world is prominent in Beau is Afraid but symbolically rich in this movie! Also, DID is suggested in the movie when Beau says over the recording that there was another person that would stand up to Mona, when Beau strangles Mona and then Beau’s mood abruptly changes to apologetic, suggesting that a different personality resides in Beau. DID development normally involves childhood trauma as an antecedent which also supports the them of generational trauma.

Good analysis, for me the TV fast forwarding his footage was there to further emphasize the point that he has no control over his life, that his actions and decisions are already made for him.

One thing I noticed. Beau's lawyer at the end fell face flat to that rock pillar, completely crushing his face and dying, just like in midsummer. His decapitated maid, headless just like the mom and grandma from hereditary. I know these are Ari aster's work, and of course he's allowed to reference his past work into other projects of his, but what if, all these films are actually connected in some way? What if his mother became such a huge success because she worshiped the same demon from hereditary?🤔

Questions: 1. What was up with the moms business? Was it a pharmaceutical/shelter home thing & (I’m not sure if I saw this correctly, but..) when Beau is looking through the timeline at his mothers house that tattooed guy was in the picture collage that made up the image of his mom. Also why was he the poster boy For everything & how did this contribute to the movie. 2. The bathtub scene with his mom. Why did it seem so out of body when his mom was taking the kid up to the attic & then would turn and ask if he wanted that too. 3. Giant penis, old Beau & ptsd guy. I get the giant penis was to convey his pent up feelings about his virginity, but wtf did it mean when that whole thing went down? 4. Were Grace and Roger in on the thing with his mom too? Why did Grace keep hinting stuff like “stop incriminating yourself” & ”go to channel 78” 5. The apartment thing. So when everybody breaks into his house, what was up with that guy that kept targeting him? What was up with that guy that kept seeking help on the top with the bathtub, and what was up with the brown recluse? 6. What was the meaning of the statue of the mother holding the baby? I noticed Beau had a picture of his mom in his apartment where she is holding Beau as an infant in the exact same way. The little statue he collects for her is damaged and he keeps holding on to it, and he eventually gives it away to the pregnant woman in the green dress. And the mom had a giant one in her front yard & got really hurt about him giving it away. 7. WAS THAT REALLY HIS DAD AT THE PLAY? Wtf why did he come up saying that & then suddenly die. 8. The guy up on the tree at the play? What was that about. Other stuff: I thought some scenes were so funny like “sometimes she will look like a man”, the picture of the grandma at Beau’s moms house, the giant penis (a couple next to me was so fed up with the movie at this point they left), the police scene, etc. The movie also made me so anxious the whole entire time & it really felt like dang this is how Beau perceives the world how sad. I also really liked how everything was filmed, like genius angles & the order and lines and everything was *chefs kiss*

Although I still dislike the movie, this analysis definitely helped me appreciate it more, in regards to the themes of generational trauma and mental health. I might re-watch it or at least change my letterboxd rating lol For me, the movie made me angry and the humor never hit, but my audience seemed to laugh plenty.. even during moments that were super unfunny and uncomfortable to me (as someone with anxiety disorders). That made me so angry from start to finish. That's kind of interesting given your comment on the trial scene's audience and mental illness. I suppose I related too much to Beau in the end, or at least empathized with him. I do wonder who was playing the defense lawyer at the end. They never showed them close up even when they fell. Anyway, thank you for this vid!

Brilliant interpretation. As a child of a parent who suffered with mental health problems who has since struggled with my own as a result of that situation and has also struggled with negative feelings towards that parent for the trauma it caused in my childhood and the guilt that comes with feeling that because I know it wasn't their fault, the conflicting feeling of love and resentment that comes from such experience, this film really struck a chord with me in a way it doesn't seem to have with others I've spoken to about it.

Just watched this movie, and I know it may sounds crazy, but this is probably one of my favorite films of all time. The world-building, visual, and the themes are so beautifully done. The performances from the actors are also mind-blowing. This movie surely isn't for everyone, but this really is my kind of cinema. Love your analyze, it explains everything that I wasn't so sure about the film. Breaking down those messages definitely helps me appreciate this movie even more. Overall, it's a chaotic, ambitious, disturbing, yet incredibly beautiful masterpiece. Just started to do some film critics by my own like a year ago, I really wish film like this one can be seen and love by more audience. And I'm so glad to find this channel that analyze the film so professionally and thoroughly. You truly are amazing!

Some fun Easter eggs I saw (that don't really have to do with the theme/meaning): A couple people have commented on water and the lack of water being a source of major source of fear and panic in Beau's journey. His last name is Wasserman, German for Waterman. His mother lives in Wasserton, literally Watertown. Beau has a book on his nightstand by fictional author "Satyajit Martin." Aster has said this film's plot partly mirrors "Panther Panchali" by Indian filmmaker Satyajit Ray, and also that Martin Scorcese's Goodfellas was his earliest inspiration to be a director. I guess "Satyajit Scorcese" would have been too obvious. Goodfellas stars Ray Liotta, and the fictional airline in the movie is called AirLiotta. Finally, maybe a massive stretch, but Beau lives in the fictional city of Corrina, and Ray Liotta was in a 1994 movie called 'Corrina, Corrina.''

Really really REALLY good movie. Shit legit blew my fucking mind. Dude Ari Aster is the best filmmaker of our generation.

Man, this movie is a perfect 10/10. It's taken me 2 days of picking it apart in my brain do decide how I feel, but I love it so much

One thing I thought was interesting in the trial at the end, that was foreshadowed earlier in the film as his “confession”, was the memories that were shown weren’t actually damning at all, and were quite minor things. The fact he held onto these things, felt guilt, and feared he would be harshly judged if they ever came to light was very interesting, as the crowd at the end ultimately do judge him for.

Are we really supposed to view Roger and his wife as positive ppl that Beau just cant seem to accept? It felt more like a sunken place thing where they wanted him to replace their lost son and fill that void

i have never commented on a youtube video of this sort before past 15 years. nice one lucas, thank you.

What about the note that the friendly mother gives him about “incriminating himself”?

As someone with a severe anxiety disorder.. this movie was no mystery to figure out.. it mirrored my existence before getting extensive therapy and medicated. Its that bad unfortunately for people with extreme anxiety. When I was a kid I was told I had a learning disability because I got so much anxiety I would just make up answers on tests to have the stress of having a test be over.. thats how tone deaf society is towards anxiety disorders. Hopefully this movie serves as a window for humans without such ails understand mental illness better. Furthermore generational trauma needs more discussion in the mainstream cultural zeitgeist. 10/10 movie in my opinion. Ari Aster is the future of cinema.

That was a very good synopsis in under 15 minutes. The film has so many layers, one could interpret the film in so many ways, but I like the path you took. Nice one !

The film starts with Beau literally dying, and it ends with him being reborn as a newborn baby. Everything that happens in between is an allegory to his wasted life and moments lost. I appreciate its lesson but can't help but feel it was done so much better in the film Enter The Void. Beau Is Afraid is just too bloated and self-indulgent for its own good. None of the characters are likeable, which is a trend I'm seeing in Ari's films. Both Ari and this film think they're being way more clever than they actually are.

I suffer from severe anxiety and chronical depression and like Beau, i'm afraid of most things in life. I thought this movie would appeal to me and i recognized some of his feelings, but it was just horrible. It surely had a handful fun moments, but it was far from enjoyable. This movies suffers from the same problems like many other similar complex and metaphorical movies; they don't make it entertaining. It's just sloggering drawn out metaphors and boring weirdness upon weirdness and it's not like they're always giving new insights with each part - it's often just hammering down the same point in multiple uninteresting ways. And it's THREE HOURS of this. I doubt Aster could've made this movie more interesting or entertaining by removing an hour, but at least it would've been one hour less boredom.

I can safely say that this movie is a dark antithesis to Everything, Everywhere, All at Once. Poor Beau.

I thought the other beau seen in the attic was a lost twin brother! the mom says right before she slams him in there "that it was a memory not a dream"!

This movie was way too much for my smol brain, thank you for this break down, it helped a lot order my thoughts about this movie, love your take on the story

great video mate, this was pretty helpful for me to organize my thoughts a bit after watching this movie :D

Thanks this is the most comprehensive and believable analysis that I have seen so far.

I'm the original short film 'Beau' Ari made in 2011, the very thing he was afraid of was in fact his mother in the end. She was literally the monster lurking and was the one that stole his keys out of his door. The last scene was her smoking a cigarette and listening to Beau leaving a message on the recorder asking her to help him after he had a psychotic break. I believe this is why Ari had every copy of the short film scrubbed off the Internet for the upcoming movie.

Hi Blue! Greetings from Panamá. My boyfriend is showing me this video which is GREAT. This is a movie with many interpretations. Very interesting, but not to watch at cinemas. Better at home, taking breaks, and formulating theories about the film. Once again, thanks Lucas.

Thank you for the explanation. Went to the cinema today hoping for a peaceful Saturday evening, but it was quite disturbing😅

The UPS guy says he didn't do anything, but I've seen enough Barry to know that isn't true.

Thanks for such a thoughtful and insightful breakdown of this film. I feel like so many people dismissed this because it doesn't conform to their expectations of a horror film / Ari Aster project. Hearing you break down these themes and explore the depths was really refreshing and made me want to watch the film again.

The first part of the movie for sure was reality. It was not an exaggeration just go to new york and California or any blue state. Movie gave me flashbacks. Also i loke your content im subscribed now.

I deal with a lot of anxiety and this past week (prior to watching this movie) I was in my head thinking about how difficult my life can be because I’m always struggling to decipher what is actually happening and what is really only happening in my head and being projected outward: Is this really happening? Does this person really think this or that about me, or is this something I’ve internalized and feel about myself being projected? I bring this up because it’s interesting how in this breakdown, he mentions that it’s a consistency throughout the film that we never really know what’s reality and what isn’t, and it just reminded me of what I’ve personally being dealing with. It’s tremendously difficult to navigate the world of relationships when you’re constantly anxiety ridden, because there’s this constant push-pill dynamic of having a sensitivity and picking up on actual real threats in your environment (which validate your fears), and then having instances where the anxiety is mainly brought about because of projections and past traumas and hurts which also validate our fears. In other words, I feel it could be a strong possibility that the constant state of confusion this movie puts us in as an audience, could be intentional in that it helps us somewhat understand the anxiety-ridden world of Beau.

In the first part of the movie thr world is so wild also because it's how his mother told him what the world is like. So it's a version of the world through a worried, overprotective mothers' eyes

Thank God for this! I suffer with Anxiety from childhood trauma from the mother. I was too close to it to be objective. This helps, thank you ❤

the fact that you think his mother loves him tells me that you do not understand that word. the mother needs him. she is dependant on him. but she does not love him. love is not about wanting someone. it s aboult wanting fr someone. the ind of love you are refering t s the same love that NAMBLA talks about. and it is abuse. thiss movie is about a little boy who was severel;y abused by his mother which is why i found little to like about it. and i cheered why beau finally kills his mother but was devisted when he chose to take his own life at the end because he could not move past the guilt.

I always enjoy your movie breakdowns. You are the only channel I watch! Thank you for all your work. It's so greatly appreciated

automatically one of my favorite film breakdowns. just saw this film last night and god it was so good

Good analysis man! I really needed this explanation.

I'm thinking about Elaine's role in Beau's life, and I'm curious about their spontaneous reunion at Mona's house. Wasn't she kind of larger than life? She wore some pretty elaborate lingerie for someone going to a funeral. She seems more like an idealized personification of Beau's repressed sexual desires. I'm also curious about Elaine being a former employee of Mona. What was her job? Or was Elaine's role more like a stage prop in Mona's machinations of Beau's life? Her dead frozen corpse is literally carried away by two of Mona's employees. (And did Mona really owe something to Elaine? Was this just an attempt to squeeze some money from Mona's surviving family? Or was there something else to Mona and Elaine's employer-employee relationship?)

I always love when a film ends with an audience scene to make us reflect on ourselves as viewers.

The format by which you lay out your videos is genius. I can't believe more people don't do this.

Great breakdown! I just watched this film, and some of it threw me for a loop. You cleared up some things I had questions on.

As someone who deeply relates to this type of manifestation of anxiety and trauma, I’m so thrilled that this was made.

Well done, looking forward to more videos! Ari is a strange and complicated creative and I'm always up for discussion about his work, so good!

Really enjoyed this breakdown and your video for Saltburn. You do your research and deliver in a clear and concise manner.

Holy shit this was an incredible breakdown ! You are a smart man

To me Beau's "dad" symbolized his fear of intimacy and of his own masculinity. The fact that it is so monstrous seems like it represents the fear of sex and intimacy that Mona instilled in Beau. Also I don't think that's Beau's dad at 11:55, because at Mona's house there is an engraving that says his name is Harry.

Finally someone talked about this at this level! Thank you!

I heard a podcast theory that when Beau doesn’t take water with his pill he has an episode and is actually sectioned to a mental health ward because he is considered harmful to himself and others when he runs in front of the van and that he is in a mental health ward the whole time and the other characters are just like doctors and patients but he’s so out of touch with reality and living in a constant state of paranoia and delusion. That’s why viewers are confused and trying to figure out what’s real and what’s not because we’re in the pov of Beaus illness. But also I haven’t even watched the movie 😂

I saw this movie yesterday, it wasn’t even a comedy for me because there wasn’t a single moment where I get a laugh at it (except for the scene when Elaine kissed Beau), it felt like an acid trip, but without taking acid, considering that it’s almost 3 hours, it was the longest movie I’ve ever seen and I didn’t even get up to use the restroom, I was sitting through 3 hours (including previews) and holding it in

Incredible video man I tried looking around youtube for more content on Beau if Afraid and this was by far the best

I love the portrait of the grandmother looking on like if an older bette davis that got hit with an ugly stick !!