The Ending Of Captain Fantastic

The ending of Captain Fantastic resolves the conflict of traditional vs non-traditional lifestyles. Throughout the film the audience is encouraged to support Ben's non-traditional, chaotic and unsafe lifestyle due to him being the protagonist and allowing us to sympathise with him. This is subverted when we learn of Jack's character. His character's lifestyle is the opposite of Ben's; structured, ordinary and safe. The audience is forced to question who is in the right and who should be taking care of the children. These two themes are opposing each other throughout the film (e.g. the funerals, the families, etc). This is culminated with a compromise of the two lifestyles.

The new equilibrium is displayed in the ending through different elements of film form. One of these elements mise-en-scene. For example, the setting of the ending is a vibrant and isolated suburban house. This is a perfect mixture between the two lifestyles: the bright greenery surrounding the house and sparkling blue ocean represents the non traditional ways of Ben and the traditional and familiar suburban house represents the ideology Jack integrated on Ben's life. This highlights the impact Jack has had on Ben, allowing him to change his ritualistic and tribe-like routines into a more safe and ordinary lifestyle, with some of their routine still in place, perhaps suggesting that apart of Ben still believes he is right.

This is further established by the use of sound. For example, the music for the ending scene is whimsical and joyful. This represents the "happy" ending for the film, how both side of argument for tradition have found a way to compromise. The score emphasises the happiness of the ending and encourages the audience to be happy for Ben and his family. However, the scene also supports the argument that this is defeat for Ben. This is seen towards the end of the scene. The slowly fades from the scene and there a focus on diegetic sound. This maybe metaphorical of how the excitement and adventure in Ben's life has faded from his life: faded because of Jack, faded because his commitment to his kids, faded because of the society he tried to hard to keep his family away from. The diegetic noise focus highlights the mundanity of their lives now. Finally the sigh Ben lets out in the final moments maybe a sigh of regret that he let the lifestyle go or maybe a sigh of reminiscence of the "good times" before he had to conform to society's standards.


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