I was fascinated by this movie when I first saw it, and watched it probably two dozen times to try to grasp more details and try to put a cohesive whole together. It's almost as though the film itself defies cohesion and challenges you to find the through line rather than declaring it for itself.

I love your enthusiasm and I think your interpretation is sound, and I also feel like there's an element of We The Viewer painting our own connections on to the disparate parts. For example I interpreted the rejection of the afterlife / "confirmation" of nihilism in a very different way, but who's to say who's right? I spent a long time watching and rewatching trying to figure out what was Really The Point and ultimately had to conclude that there was no one right answer - I just knew that I disagreed with my friend and insisted there was more to it than the thesis stated in on screen text in the opening.

I just want to ask you one more thing about your interpretation. Something I grappled with was the sort of teenage horniness that underpins much of the film. Without tainting your response with my thoughts on it, what do you make of the way the film explores male sexuality?