The opening tracking shot of a hotel hallway that resembles a prison should clue you in as to what awaits. There are so many things to like and be fascinated by in this movie. And for all of its avant-garde leanings, this is actually a very classically designed story. An iconoclastic music star, Pink Floyd, tries/tries not to think about his past and how he got to where he is, which is borderline psychotic. And because he's so disturbed, he can't even think in a linear way, so the journey we take into his mind is necessarily whacked-out.

We also get to see how fascism is born from misdirected hate and idolatry. As a rock star, Floyd has seen the adulation of his audiences, so he's familiar with the phenomenon. But at the same time, he detests them for buying into his act. It's like the old Groucho Marx joke about refusing membership to any group who would let you in. He knows he's a fake (his teachers and people like his wife have told him so),so everyone else who thinks he's real must be fakes also. It's a big cyclic game. So he can't let any of them in, behind his wall, because they are, by definition, phony.

It's interesting, also, to think about how he has turned full circle into fascism. It's just part of his dream and how he deals with his anger, but it's also an interesting reaction to the absent father. Had there been no homosexuals or Jews etc., there would have been no need for a Hitler, and therefore there would have been no need for his father to die. But instead of hating Nazis, he hates the people that "provoked" the Nazis. (I could go on for days with stuff like this, but I'll stop here.)

Just watch the movie and be impressed with the way it works on so many levels.

If for whatever reason you should find yourself in the company of aliens from the planet Nietsche , a planet whose inhabitants have gone beyond what can be described as human nature so much so that they have no knowledge of what being human is , then show them this film that explains everything

The story starts with the Anzio landings that sees the death of Pink's father . As Plato said " Only the dead have seen the end of war " and that is bitterly true , man will always be man and man will always kill man until the end of time

Pink goes to school and education is a double edged sword . It has the potential to educate young humans but as often happens these young humans find themselves being used as victims of whatever mood the teacher is in . Someone must pay for authorities inaquequacies

Pink leaves school and falls in love , but love is the sharpest and most double edged sword in all of creation . It inspires but it also destroys us . Despite hundreds of millions of human beings being killed in wars , genocide and purges there is nothing so personally painful or as cruel as the betrayal by a lover . The darkest pits of Hell can not be as hellish or as sadistic as infidelity

As Pink descends further into his personal madness we see him take his revenge . Humans are sexual beings and perhaps this is what makes us both demons and avenging angels . Irony is to the fore as he stops becoming a victim and turns into unfeeling fascist dictator . Someone must pay for all the wrongs Pink has endured and it's the innocent that must suffer

You could go to the planet Nietsche with all the written works of every human philosopher who ever lived and that still wouldn't be enough to explain what it's like to be human . As it stands Alan Parker and Roger Waters have made a cogent film explaining why humans are the way they are and how they react to the surrounding universe . It's a film whose soundtrack is every bit as powerful as the human condition

I have seen the movie several times now and every time I watch it I see something new, something I haven't seen or heard before. Some unsung line, some lost message... Every time I watch the movie I seem to dig deeper into this complex work of art.

However, I cannot tell you how disappointed I am that this movie is so underestimated, and, above all, misunderstood. How many times have you heard someone say something like: "You can't watch 'The Wall' unless you're really drunk or really high" ? I have heard this line probably from every single person that has seen the movie and it hurts me so much that nobody really tries to understand the movie.

The key to understanding the movie is in the lyrics. The movie is not just a long series of video clips that accompany the album. The images are just a final piece of the puzzle, the final touch on a magnificent piece of art.

The first time I saw this movie I felt very embarassed. Yes, embarassed, because I felt like a fool for hearing the album so many times and not realizing what it was about. The movie made me appreciate the lyrics of a rock song for the first time in my life.

The week after seeing "The Wall" for the first time I bought Pink Floyd's "The Final Cut". Do you know what was the first thing I did when I opened the CD case? I read the lyrics, from the first to the last word. And I actually tried to understand what the album was about.

"The Wall" is so much more than you think it is. The only solution to not understaning the movie is watching it again and paying more attention. Once you get it, you will never forget it.