I have to say that was a very interesting depiction of Hell
It looked almost organic like something out of the aliens movies
But what was it's meaning in the film? Did the lady how died of to hell then get a reprieve?
Good question. I thought she went to heaven so I'm not sure why there'd be a vision/depiction of hell... Perhaps she was going past hell on the way to heaven? lol
sharethanks for the answer
shareActually, I think that's pretty much it.
The author for Brainstorm is the same one as for Jacob's Ladder. And from what I can tell, he's read a lot of books on near death experiences and stuff like The Tibetan Book of the Dead. One thing that comes up is the idea of passing through a lower realm on the way to a higher realm.
I agree it did look organic. When I saw the movie, I didn't think it was a depiction of hell, I thought it was a depiction of Lillian's violent struggle against the death of her body; the physical blood-and-guts part of her that she is being forced to let go.
Years later when I read the script, I was surprised to see that it is indeed a depiction of hell. The subtext (Scene 236B) says this:
"It's DANTE'S INFERNO come true. The sound is a DEVASTATING ROAR that combines with a TERRIFYING SHRIEK, as though millions of souls were wailing at once."
I guess Trumbull made whatever he thought "DANTE'S INFERNO" meant. It was pretty good.