"Sometimes you have to keep the body going until the mind and heart catch up." In modern writing technique, it is generally considered heavy handed and gauche to actually state the point of your story in the actual story. Better to illustrated it, than to tell the story and then tell people what to think of it. Bringing Out the Dead is an example that sometimes --- and only sometimes --- you can get away with it and still have a good story.
In this case, it works, because it is not a moral or a singular point, but a statement of life, expressed on more than one level, and we can see as the film unfolds how the statement transforms from one sense to the next. The statement which first comes out of Frank's mouth about something seemingly unrelated, ultimately resolves itself into the key to his own dilemma. Not actually a solution to the horror of his day to day existence, but an answer at least.
But most of all, if I had to sum this film up with one word it would be: "intensity". If you like intense storylines, Bringing Out the Dead will certainly not disappoint. I dislike using a cliche like "roller coaster ride", yet it really is appropriate. You laugh one minute, then you're angry, laugh again, then get depressed; you're brought up and down so much that when the ride is over, you're exhausted and it takes you two days to figure out what you thought of it all.
In this case, it works, because it is not a moral or a singular point, but a statement of life, expressed on more than one level, and we can see as the film unfolds how the statement transforms from one sense to the next. The statement which first comes out of Frank's mouth about something seemingly unrelated, ultimately resolves itself into the key to his own dilemma. Not actually a solution to the horror of his day to day existence, but an answer at least.
But most of all, if I had to sum this film up with one word it would be: "intensity". If you like intense storylines, Bringing Out the Dead will certainly not disappoint. I dislike using a cliche like "roller coaster ride", yet it really is appropriate. You laugh one minute, then you're angry, laugh again, then get depressed; you're brought up and down so much that when the ride is over, you're exhausted and it takes you two days to figure out what you thought of it all.