October 1, 2021. Is there an ancient document that predicts a doomsday date? There is also just a hint of a reality beyond that of which the aliens were guiding the human survivors, which in turn means that the notion of God wasn't entirely disregarded. Edit, It is never told to us in the movie, therefore we can only speculate. Is it strictly fiction? The first one is our atmosphere, the second heaven is outer space, and the third one is God's dwelling place. Lucinda is the other Cassandra character no one believes. Or at least not entirely. Unknown Given the number of alien contact movies in the past few decades, it is more likely that angels visiting Earth would be greeted as aliens than that aliens visiting Earth would be greeted as angels. It's possible that the rabbits are intended to help the children's new civilization by establishing a food chain. Moreover, Diana and Abby are female counterparts to John and Caleb. In the . Ending / spoiler. They most certainly seemed to be leaving our galaxy rather than ascending to a literal depiction of Heaven. Created by [2] Filming also took place at Camberwell High School, which was converted into the fictional William Dawes Elementary, located in 1959 Lexington. John discovers that Lucinda's numbers are dates, death tolls, and geographical coordinates of major disasters over the past fifty years (including the Oklahoma City bombing, the September 11 attacks, and Hurricane Katrina), and three have yet to happen. Edit, Maybe the other children were children with various types of knowledge and skills. Proof Aliens Exist. What exactly is the theory behind this movie? Some people even think that guardian angels are . Knowing draws on a lot of biblical inspiration, most notably in its handling of the idea of prophecy and the apocalypse. Maybe the worst, but cowboys vs. aliens might take the cake there. [6] Proyas said the aspect that attracted him the most was the "very different script" and the notion of people seeing the future and "how it [shapes] their lives". Our current world was considered to be a success, and therefore humans were created in it (c. 3000 BC). John is told he cannot go with them because he never heard the whispering, so he convinces Caleb to leave with Abby and two pet rabbits they found, and both are transported away by the beings. Locomotion The Strangers themselves are said to represent angels due to their heavenly appearance and how the streams of light behind them resemble angel wings. The Mayans considered this a historic event, as the previous world (the third attempt, by that stage) was written off as a failure by their gods after its 13th b'ak'tun. [5] Locations included the Geelong Ring Road; the Melbourne Museum; "Cooinda", a residence in Mount Macedon which was the location for all of the "home and garden" scenes; and Collins Street. It also records some interesting phenomena that . [3] Presumably, aliens are born and produce offspring because, you know, biological. While hovering, the ships' petals are extended outwards, but when taking off, they move straight up and lock together, giving the ship a loose resemblance to a closed flower or a head of wheat. These revelations come a little out of left field, but there are a handful of hints peppered throughout the movie that add context to Knowing's ending. Edit, The aliens are known as Nordics as seen in European UFO sightings. It seems odd that the alien race chose to save Caleb and Abby and raise two strange human children, but it was so the human race could start again. 7 (Beethoven) - Allegretto,[18] which is played without any accompanying sound effects in the final Boston disaster scene of the film. Knowing is a death mask a memento of the dead. Caleb is one of the chosen ones. Maybe to say that Knowing is a film of many layers is to give it too much credit, but there certainly are a lot of themes and inspirations at play, and that's ultimately what makes its ending a little confusing. Some are hard to miss, but many are actually surprisingly subtle considering Nic Cage's bad movie reputation. Rabbits, god-damn rabbits. ", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Knowing_(film)&oldid=1141829726, This page was last edited on 27 February 2023, at 01:08. Whitney Hopler from Crosswalk shares, " Job 38:4-7 reports that extraterrestrial life (which God describes as " morning stars") celebrated with joy when the Earth is created, but those extraterrestrials are likely angels.". As the mystery of the numbers unravels, John learns that not only can he not stop the final event, but that it will wipe out all human life. He writes, "Cage plays an astronomer, and his discussions with a colleague hint that the film may actually grapple with the question of predicting the future, perhaps even offer a plausible theory. The Bible indicates that angels were created at the same time the earth was formed, even before human life was created. In the following days, John witnesses two of the three final events in person: a plane crash and a New York City Subway derailment caused by a faulty siding. Is the tree at the end supposed to be the tree of knowledge or the tree of life? [5] Summit Entertainment took on the responsibility to fully finance and distribute the film. Koestler, with his expertise in maths and astrophysics, is the perfect and perhaps only man capable of cracking the code. Also, Lucinda was a child in the 1950s, so she was obviously a full grown adult by the time the world ends. Diana later died when her vehicle was later broadsided by a truck. Were the whisper people angels or aliens? They . By Chris Murphy. Fr. This is the first of three WOE's of Revelation. It can also be taken, however, to mean something else entirely. The "morning stars" are angels, whereas "the sons of God" are the leaders of other worlds. At least, that's what they believe happened to them. Being a man of science and all, its about 3 minutes before Koestler discovers the code relates to disasters. Edit, Presumably, they were a separate code of events for the new world. By including so much religious allegory, Knowing actually sets up its own ending relatively early on by foreshadowing Nicolas Cage's character death and spiritual redemption. The Strangers' ships were seen leaving at the end, but it remains possible that some Strangers remained on the planet to provide guidance to the growing children, unless Human adults were also evacuated off-screen. She also understood that something really bad would occur on October 19th, but the reason why she wasn't saved is left unanswered. Revelation 9:1-12 describes a locust type creature which stings with its tail and has a poison . As we see in the film, the aliens only save the children. The ark, along with many other arks, leave the planet. Koestler and Caleb are struggling with bereavement. The possible reason for the selection of children is likely a matter of age. Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian suggested Knowing was saved by its ending, concluding that "the film sticks to its apocalyptic guns with a spectacular and thoroughly unexpected finish. 6 Stephany Fay Cohen. That picture is actually a reverse copy of Matthus Merian's 17th century engraving of Ezekiel's "chariot vision." TLDR: Apparently I just hate aliens. What Endwell pastor and author makes of UFO sightings: They may be angels and in the Bible. In the moments before destruction, his father comforts him with the words: this isnt the end. [CW: disturbing images]. Father-son relationships are hugely important in sci-fi, with Star Wars' Darth Vader/Luke Skywalker relationship the most famous of all, but there's also something remarkably biblical in John embracing his father (who happens to be a reverend, no less). The alien strangers have come to save a select band of survivors: children (see also The Day the Earth Stood Still). ", "Tribulation 99. Aliens, or intelligent and communicative non-human life forms, are a well-documented entities. They are also capable of flight, leaving trails of energy that resemble wings as they do. Its a striking piece of music that loops between playful and foreboding. Related: Kick-Ass Finally Gave Nicolas Cage The Superhero Movie He Deserved. . If we abstract "Knowing" away from the realm of metaphor and view the story through a more literal lens, it reveals surprising similarities with the works of Erich von Dniken, the 20th-century Swiss writer famous for theorizing that ancient human religions were a result of contact with aliens. The film borrows from horror, too; the genres ambiguity is partly what makes the film a masterpiece of haunting dread. The current b'ak'tun "cycle", the 13th, ends on the 21st of December, 2012. Later its the entire human race. "We know very little about the nature, essence, powers and capabilities of angels," the authors write. Either I'm wrong or most of the movie critics in America are mistaken. Angels surround us all the time figuratively if not literally especially during the holidays. . The way I've framed the thought experiment in recent conversations is this . Mayan predictions for events continue into the future, either as a new 14th b'ak'tun or as a "distance date" from the end of the 13th b'ak'tun. By Gene W Strasser Jul 29, 2022 3:46 PM EDT. The tree's fruit might give another ability to the person who eats it. Job 38:7 tells us that when our world was created, "the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy.". The Archangel Gabriel, painted 1431-1433 by by Fra Angelico. [12][13] Filming also took place at the Haystack Observatory in Westford, Massachusetts. For instance family and friends encourage him to date again but Koestler isnt ready to move on. [23] The film had grossed US$80 million in the United States and Canada and US$107 million in other territories for a worldwide total of US$186.5 million, plus US$27.7 million with home video sales, against a production budget of US$50 million. Caleb and Abby are taken away to a distant planet, while John and Everyone Else the EE mentioned in the alien code are left to a fiery annihilation. Koestler is not, and is left behind. Diana suggests that she take Caleb and Abby to a set of underground caves as shelter and attempts to do so without telling John. Even if you think all discussion of aliens is ridiculous, it's fun to let the mind roam over the implications. Arthur Koestler and The Roots of Coincidence). Almost. They are said to be one of the alien races in contact with earth. [16], Proyas used a Red One 4K digital camera. Answer (1 of 10): I know a kook that seriously believes fallen angels are cruising around the solar system in spaceships. This comes back to bite at end, when Caleb is rescued and Koestler isnt. The 2009 sci-fi thriller ends with an unforgettable twist, but it leaves a few questions unanswered. On-screen conversations about determinism and the afterlife are further clues about Koestlers fate; theyre also the films key themes. The only honest way to end the movie would be to deliver something on the scale of their deepest-seated fears, and that's just what "Knowing" offers. Pluck this movie, and it vibrates. Angels aren't real, though. | Web. From the 1936 earthquake musical San Francisco to 1998's Armageddon, 2004's Day After Tomorrow, and 2021's Don't Look Up, disaster and apocalypse movies both do well at the box office and deliver spectacles that last long in viewers' memories. See the last few seconds of the trailer. Caleb is sometimes translated as faithful or loyal, probably because a dog displays these attributes towards its master. British author Arthur C Clarke wrote a novel Childhood's End (1963) in which aliens enforce peace on Earth so that the children can develop their psychic powers. 'Knowing': Bad day with black rocks", "Can a science-fiction movie infringe a tech patent? The powerful and rich and famous of this world give him their allegiance. That might have been what convinced him to save the rabbits. Telepathic 'Sons of God' (Hebrew bene elohim) is clearly used of angels in Job 38:7. Rich good answer to your extraterrestrial 'inquisition' question! The thinking person's guide to books, films & pop culture. Maybe the whisper people chose some specific children who would be great at working together. The Book of Enoch calls them The Watchers. Or, it may have had a purpose similar to Noah's Ark, with the child refugees of Earth taking with them two animals from various species in order to save and repopulate not just humanity, but the Earth's animal species, as well. This ambiguity between Christian metaphor and radically secular speculation explains the movie's divisive reputation among Christians, detailed on the website ChristianAnswers.net. But aside from the personal experience of bereavement, Knowing also touches on collective grief. An old tradition says that guardian angels are appointed to children at the time of their birth. The UFOs are angels, but they're driven by actual aliens. Alien Angles - Learning Connections Essential Skills Estimation - visualize angle sizes. Get to know the people first and figure out what they believe and why. They have no mass, so they can most li. Sidebar: the alien/angelic code is a cursed chalice. The bigger twist is that this presages a doomsday neither planet nor protagonist can survive. The next day, Abby colors in the sun on the engraving, which gives John a revelation. In Matthew and Luke's gospel accounts, Zachariah, Mary, and Joseph all have encounters with angels. The answer came to me without hesitation, He has to be in control. In addition, John's son Caleb also shares his name with a biblical figure. The Strangers are a mysterious alienrace of hyper advanced beings that sought to save certain Humans from Earth's impending destruction. They also appear to have some sort of precognitive ability that allows them to know the exact date, coordinates, and casualties of future disasters. In the disaster movie genre, this is where the protagonist begins a quest to overcome the impossible. [36], On November 25, 2009, Global Findability filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Summit Entertainment and Escape Artists in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, claiming that a geospatial entity object code was used in the film Knowing which infringed Patent .mw-parser-output .citation{word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}US 7107286 Integrated information processing system for geospatial media. Racial abilities 1 - Angels were created by God. The religious symbolism also lends itself to one more interpretation of the ending, though: that the film's aliens are actually angels. With the aliens refusing to take John, it seems as though they specifically want children to rebuild humanity. 2009's Knowing movie had an unforgettable ending, and here are the answers to some of its biggest questions. Quoting: Anonymous Coward 83033374. [5] The project was set up at Columbia Pictures. He doesnt believe in heaven, after all. However, Knowing shot itself in the foot with its final scene, ensuring it would join Roland Emmerich's 2012 as another CGI-heavy but forgettable apocalypse flick. The beings who have been whispering into Caleb's (Chandler Canterbury) and Abby's (Lara Robinson) ears finally reveal themselves as a more evolved alien race, who have been landing space arks all over Earth to save a select few humans and animals from the imminent destruction of the planet. Bioluminescent Well before the film neared its by turns dismal and ditzy conclusion, I found myself knowingyet hardly able to believewhat was about to happen. Height What's more anthropocentric is to assume that human . The aliens in their "natural" form are symbolic of angels, as seen by their wings and the Eden symbolism of the finale. Koestlers house is falling apart. Alien Species is a FANDOM Books Community. With Knowing's apocalyptic climax mirroring the Book of Revelation, as well as the various other biblical similarities, it's hardly a stretch to think humanity's saviors could just as likely be angels. At the films end, Koestler also seems to understand why he cant go with Caleb, and accepts this as fitting in some way. The aliens' "whispering" is a form of selection, and only the chosen get a ticket off-world (Caleb and Abby are two children among many). October 15, 2012 Reply What we see in the film is a fairly good rendering of Ezekiel's visionwhether one considers the vision to have been of angels or of aliens.It is also worth noting that the children's names are laden with biblical meaning. [35], Knowing was released on DVD on July 7, 2009, opening in the United States at No. Each man must decide if its possible that there are no coincidences, as Hess says i.e., whether to believe in fate, destiny or divine ordinance. Things don't always have to happen the same way twice. No other reviews existed at that time. Numbers 22: Balaam and his donkey encounter an angel in the road. The following day, Lucinda engraves the remaining numbers into a closet door with her fingernails. On the Set of New York. . Woman has Sex with Aliens on This Morning 13/3/13. The solar flare then strikes, destroying all life on Earth. After spending his formative years soaking in as much pop culture trivia as possible, Niall started writing about film online in 2020, and contributes to numerous websites. [24] Metacritic gave the film a score of 41% based on 27 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews". They could also be considered Hyperversal aliens from a previous Universe cycle whose lack of a physical form and supreme knowledge are most notable. The online Encyclopedia of the Unusual and Unexplained has this to say about Guardian Angels:. I persist in the conviction that Alex Proyas's "Knowing" is a splendid thriller and surprisingly thought-provoking. He thought Nicolas Cage "borders on ridiculous here, in part because of a script that gives him little to do but freak out or act depressed". He rushes to the MIT observatory and learns that a massive solar flare with the potential to destroy all life will strike the Earth on the last date indicated by the message. Psychic Stephany Cohen claims to have had repeated, consensual, sexual relations with a group of extraterrestrials that she refers to as "Team Spirit.". Metacritic Reviews. If you're a Christian fundamentalist who believes that Armageddon is nigh, you'll have a family hug and wake up to be greeted by St Peter at the Pearly Gates. Its destiny. The Bible states the expansion is composed of three different zones called "heavens.". Skin colors So visually arresting are the images that watching a deconstructing airliner or subway train becomes more mesmerising than horrifying."[29]. . <, Last edited on 27 February 2023, at 01:08, List of films featuring the deaf and hard of hearing, "Knowing (2009) - Alex Proyas | Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related", "Grumpy Old Men,' Knowing' top short list of new Blu-ray releases", "International Film Shot at Australian Synchrotron", http://onthesetofnewyork.com/knowing.html, "Knowing (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)", "Love and hate and "Knowing" -- or, do wings have angels? So it's possible that Lucinda was simply a messenger the aliens hoped that perhaps somebody would figure out what the dates and predictions meant back when Lucinda wrote them. Like everything else, this ending is rife with ambiguity. This is part of the Ancient Astronaut Theory. Aliens, strangers, angels, some sort of hybrid, we don't know because they don't say. April 9, 2012. The following morning, John decides to be with his family when the flare strikes and drives through a chaotic Boston to his parents' house, where he reconciles with his estranged father. Ezekiel describes the lowest part of the chariot as a wheel inside a wheel. The films big tension is between science and religion: While Caleb believes his mum died and went to heaven, Koestler doesnt. The first time is when he thinks about his dead wife as the film begins. Maltusian I know that red hair is said to be caused by minerals in the earth but I am not so sure this explains away the number of red-haired giants . At first thats Koestlers wife. Typically they are the most human-looking aliens, looking like tall, white men. ], "shito") is an ambiguous term that has various meanings within the Evangelion mythos depending on the context. Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. They could also be considered Hyperversal aliens from a previous Universe cycle whose lack of a physical form and supreme knowledge are most notable. Men will seek death but won't find it. Almost nothing is known of Stranger society. Of course, Knowing isnt the first to sacrifice its lead actor, either as a plot twist or as per the genres reliance on saviours. It is also possible that the Strangers were leaving to evacuate more aliens from other planets on the brink of destruction, and would return. Edit, Awards Children are more of a blank canvas and will have a more open-mind as they grow older and learn to understand why the aliens do this. Maybe aliens from another universe are beings that do not require salvation as they are already one with God. Guided by whispering voices, Lucinda fills her paper with a series of numbers. [9], The film is set primarily in the town of Lexington with some scenes set in the nearby cities of Cambridge and Boston. The works are stored in a time capsule and opened fifty years later when the current class distributes the drawings among the students. In an attempt to finish her message, Lucinda scratched the remaining numbers on the door of the school closet with her bare hands the night after the time capsule was buried. Meanwhile, its pseudo-survival plot is an allegory for grief, religion and the human condition with a nod to the 9/11 disaster. In many ways we see the same ambiguities concerning KNOWING; are the creatures aliens or are they angels (or even a combination of both if one thinks our belief system was alien influenced)? Both Rod Lurie and Richard Kelly were attached as directors, but the film eventually went into turnaround. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times was enthusiastic, rating it four stars out of four and writing, "Knowing is among the best science-fiction films I've seenfrightening, suspenseful, intelligent and, when it needs to be, rather awesome. Nearly all forms of media, movies, television, books, music, false history . Even a few quiet, human moments have something coiling beneath. John Koestler is a skeptic going through a religious awakening: He rummages the Lucinda Embry numbers as a believer does a sacred text, equally convinced that they speak to a larger truth, and he doesn't have to understand all of it to believe. Knowing (2009) explained: sci-fi, sin and damnation, cf. This is a striking contrast to hell-like scenes of Earth consumed by fire and brimstone. Moses could have said . Instead, by trying to provide answers, Knowing created an unsatisfactory kind of ambiguity, one that was a product of bad storytelling rather than deliberately creating mystique. The point the ending of this movie is trying to express is that the Angels in the Bible were merely altruistic aliens. | But what ancient man perceived as Gods descending from the heavens were actually aliens who helped teach man to build and evolve into the dominant species on the planet. After a number of rewrites, the script that eventually went to film was written by British screenwriter Stuart Hazeldine and Australian Alex Proyas (who also directed the movie). Its a heart-breaking choice, one the film stokes with the repetition of their promise to stay together forever. The seventeenth-century mystic Amos Komensky (1592-1670) declared that each child has an angel "given to him by God and ordained to be his guardian, that [the angel] might guard him, preserve him, and . Children of Caleb and Abby's age could survive being separated from their parents, and they're young enough to give them plenty of time to rebuild and adjust to the destruction of Earth (which is, understandably, often a major sticking point for humans in sci-fi), essentially allowing for a smoother transition into their roles as the first of a new society. Answer (1 of 42): Sure, why not. Knowing Ending Explained: The Biggest Questions Answered, Lord Of War True Story: Who Nicolas Cage's Character Is Based On, Nic Cages Dracula Can Outdo His Vampire Method Acting, Kick-Ass Finally Gave Nicolas Cage The Superhero Movie He Deserved. Angels are immortal and the Bible suggests that, as such, they have no need to procreate. There are millions of these aliens all over our world. Fate can be known in advance (i.e., Lucindas code) but that fate is inescapable. If there ever was a species you would * not* want introduced into an alien eco-system, rabbits would make the top 5 easily. When I then multiply that, per the equation, by the 1 in a billion probability of . Whether you read "Knowing" as a movie about angels mistaken for aliens or aliens mistaken for angels, one thing is for sure: The movie gets, and incorporates, much of the existential appeal of spiritual devotion, as well as many of its tough underlying questions. Edit, The whisper people gave him a premonition, an image of what was going to happen, to show him that animals as well as people were going to die in the end. The Sons of God are angels (fallen angels), the daughters of men are human women, they produced children and as you can imagine the hybrid beings were huge.giants!