Ok. So I think one of my favorite parts about Iron Lung is the fact that to me, it's the pinnacle of "show, don't tell". The audience isn't spoon fed a buffet of story and lore, but rather, we are meant to sit in silence and make our own observations and draw our own conclusions about what's happening. The details exist, and they will sit there, patently waiting, until we are able to find them and piece them together and unveil what it all means.
In that way, to me, this movie is a breath of fresh air.
We might not learn too much about Simon's backstory, but through the two-ish hours we spend with him, trapped and sealed in a giant metal cage, we get to learn so much about who he is; his personality, and what that looks like while under duress. At his core, Simon is just a man; a man who just wants to live.
"Why doesn't anyone else want that...?"
He's human. And we see that humanity the most, especially in his most hopeless moments.
Simon's smart. He's a strategist, and he's a stubborn fighter. When faced with the hopeless situation of being tossed into the abyss, far from anywhere on the map he was given, his resolve ultimately just strengthened. He doubled down. He went down into the crawlspace he said he wouldn't go into, he tore out pages of the manuals he said he'd refuse to read (I can't wait till we get the DVDs so that I can pause and read those pages myself), and this fucker made his own fucking map. He tracked and marked down every single step of his trip, and even took notes when he stumbled across landmarks of interest.
He's an emotional person. I feel like anyone would be in that situation. But even for the little things; the way his expression softens when he finds the bracelet and listens to the voice recording. The sentimentality he shows by kissing it and wearing it and never taking it off, even when it holds him back. He wanted to live, not just because of human instinct, but to avenge the ones who fell before him. He wanted to be free for them. He wanted to live, because they couldn't. He wanted a part of them to live on within him, because in that way, they'd finally get the freedom they deserve too.
He's probably a bit egotistical. Whenever he's questioned about something, especially the, "are you sure?" and the "how do you know?" questions, he gets a bit of attitude and responds, "I mean, yeah. Pretty sure I know what a skeleton looks like. I'm not stupid." and "It had letters on the side-- I can read." If I recall correctly, the first time Ava calls him out about the Filament Station, his initial response was almost something to the effect of "That wasn't my fault!"
We learn that Simon feels guilt and remorse. An immense amount of it. I admittedly almost got Warfstache vibes from the bit where he nearly kills a guy with his radiation gun. Like yeah, accidentally killing people because they didn't realize that the thing they were doing was dangerous/lethal is very much a Warfstache thing to do lmao. "If you had TOLD me that shooting people KILLS them, I wouldn't have done it!!" But you can tell that Simon feels immense remorse just from that alone by the shock on his face as the welding guy falls, and the multiple apologies he makes throughout the rest of the movie. The way he stumbles to reply to Ava calling him out for Filament Station, and the emotion that starts to well in up in his voice once he's finally able to say, "That wasn't--... supposed to happen." He hates that it happened. He wishes he could forget it. The emotional part of him feels like he's the sole person to blame for it all, and the logical part doesn't think that's fair.
There's so much more I can pick apart. Even Ava. We learn that she's also stubborn. She's also determined. She also feels great amounts of guilt and shame for the past convicts who didn't make it out alive. She wants to live for the fallen too. She doesn't want them to be forgotten. Yet the push for the salvation of humanity continues on. There's no time to stop snd grieve and pay due respects. She sees Simon's humanity. Her heart breaks that she can't save him. That guilt probably weighs heavy on her conscience.
Another detail that I absolutely adore is within the soundtrack. Specifically the way some of the songs that play during the more intense moments sound almost like a heartbeat. The way that heavy thumping picks up pace as the tension builds. It's such an excellent way to show anxiety through sound and I was eating that up every single time it happened. The say the notes slowed down and stretched out when the fucking eldritch monsters came into play. The ethereal quality that gave the music in comparison. The storytelling through the audio alone was incredible. OUGHHHH!!!!
Every single part of this movie had so much thought and intention put behind it, and it shows in the best way imaginable.
The way that one streak of blood on Simon's face slowly and gradually transforms into a scrape, then a burn, then a gaping hole in the side of his face. OUGHHHH ITS SO GOOOOODDDDDDD!!!!!!
There was no overarching point to this post, this wasn't an analysis or a review, this was just simply me, ranting and raving into the void about something that just tickled my brain in a way that I've been craving for a long, long time.
It's genuinely been so long since I've seen a movie or read a book where I was genuinely rooting for the main character. It's been so long since I've consumed a story where I felt the steaks were real. It's been so fucking long since I've seen a story where it felt like the main character didn't have plot armour; where it felt like the ending could really so either way. When Simon gained hope, so did I, and I was right there with him when he lost it too. It left me at the edge of my seat the entire time, and it's been so long since something has been able to do that. That felt like a breath of fresh air.
Also, I nearly cried like-- 5 seconds into the movie because like-- idk. Something about seeing it there, in the theater, on the big screen, and just having it crash over me that this is real. Mark actually made this. And it's here. He actually shared this with the world. And I'm actually watching this. Fuck, man. FUCK.
The credits also got to me a bit. Seeing the photos of everybody who made this film a reality. Seeing their names in the credits. Seeing the photos of Mark, Amy, Chica, and Henry at the end... It just touches my heart. It's so sincere and sweet. It's such a beautiful reminder that this was made by people. Passionate people who believed in it. People who poured their purest heart and soul into it.
I hope it gave them all the world in return. I hope they're proud of what they've achieved. I hope they know that they deserve every last bit of happiness and success that this movie has brought them. Every single one of them are champions, and I hope they know that.
Mark, if this somehow gets to you, thank you. Earnestly, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for making this movie. Thank you for assembling the team, and for doing everything you did to make not only this passion project happen, but all the other ones you've done over the years too.
And thank you for sharing your creations with us.
