The Master

I took some time to think about this film after watching it, before seeing what the rest of the world thought about it, and I was very surprised. My interpretation was much more cynical, I guess, but I really don't know how to see it any other way. The relationship between Freddie and Lancaster was more of a parasitic relationship than a mutual benefitting relationship. That was until it wasn't. Lancaster's character to me seems like someone who craves control, for the same reason Freddie needs someone to control him. One of the first introductions to Lancaster's character comes from his wife, Peggy, "When we are at home, on land, there is too much pulling him in each direction. Every time he sits to write, a new attack is launched, and he spends too much time defending himself." Now, this could definitely have multiple interpretations, but throughout the movie, writing is established to be a big part of his life. If he didn't feel like he had control over that and uses the ship as his hideaway, who's to say that Freddie couldn't act as his ship back on land, something that he is the captain of, and ward off all those threats (which he does). On top of that, whenever he lost control of a conversation, he would instantly lose control of his emotions. Lancaster can also use Freddie as a guinea pig to showcase not that Freddie is actually dealing with his trauma, but that he is being turned into a husk of himself with no free thinking at all. However, Lancaster does in fact turn out to be an antidote of sorts to Freddie's misguided passions and past traumas. This is clearly established at the end of the film through to my knowledge, in 3 ways. The first and most notable is his lack of liquids. Throughout the film, he scrambles for poison, in what I imagine is a therapeutic action for him. He finally conquers the fear of going to "see about a girl". Not only is he able to face this monster in his past, but he is also able to navigate it rather naturally. The third one, and most importantly, is his view on women. At the beginning of the film, he does some very suggestive things to a sand sculpture of a woman. Then, at the end of the film, he is lying with a woman, and not only is she on top, but he is also joking and much more relaxed. The character development is pretty obvious; he doesn't see sex as a means to an end, but as a form of intimacy to share with someone you respect. Now, it may seem like from that analysis that Lancaster's therapy worked; however, I think this is where Val comes in. The scene that stood out to me the most was the one where Freddie walks onto the porch, takes a look at Val sleeping, then chugs his poison. Freddie then confronts Val, saying that he should listen to "The Master". Val shrugs off the reprimand, saying that Lancaster is making it up, then shuts his eye to ease back into sleep. Freddie, in his usual fashion, uses this moment to attack Val. Then the police show up and arrest Lancaster, which makes Freddie upset, so he fights the police, which leads to his being arrested. Then you get, in my opinion, the best scene in the film. Lancaster is calmly standing there while Freddie is thrown into the cell next to him, and he has a violent breakdown, banging his head, screaming at Lancaster, calling him a fraud, and even smashing his toilet. The reason I think this is such a great scene is that while Freddie is handcuffed and out of control, Lancaster uses this moment to reinforce the fact that Freddie needs him. Going as far as to say that the only person who likes Freddie is Lancaster. However, this conversation could have happened anywhere; it happened while they were both in prison. Lancaster wasn't in control; he was in the same cage Freddie was in, but since Freddie had his hands tied and his emotions were unregulated, Lancaster seemed to be the one in control. This takes me back to the porch. I think the moment between Val and Freddie was the catalyst for Freddie realizing what was wrong. What he needed wasn't treatments or orders; what he needed was acceptance. Therefore, the real hero of the story is Val, but that's just my interpretation. I could be wrong.