This post is part of a larger deep dive
Curious about the role of the infinite universe in Another Earth? Check out Another Earth Explained!
Or read the full Another Earth article!
The entire premise of the film is that there is another Earth just like ours, with people that look just like us, somewhere in the expanse of the universe.
As described above, there is nothing in the laws of physics that forbids such a scenario.
Indeed, in the bonus material of the DVD, Mike Cahill and Brit Marling discuss the science behind Another Earth with Dr. Richard Berendzen, a former professor of Astronomy. Dr. Berendzen mentions the idea of a multitude of universes, and the possibility of having exactly the same Earth in some of these universes (you can read the section The infinite universe to learn more about this).
The film ambiguity comes down to the last scene, when the two Rhodas meet. I’ll now elaborate on that below.
In the film, an astrophysicist called Dr. Richard Berendzen proposed the Broken Mirror Theory.
Here is the entire monologue:
“In the grand history of the cosmos, more than 13,000 million years old our Earth is replicated elsewhere. But maybe there is another way of seeing this world. If any small variation arises – they look this way, you look that way – suddenly, everything changes. And you begin to wonder: what else is different? Or one might say that you have an exact mirror image which suddenly is shattered and there’s a new reality. And therein lies the opportunity and the mystery. What else? What new? What now?”
Then Rhoda goes back to John’s house and tells him:
“They think that the moment we first saw the other Earth was the moment our synchronicity was broken. that was just over four years ago. Maybe they’re up there. Maybe not, but…maybe.”
So the theory tells you that every single event on Earth One and Earth Two was identical and happened at the same time (i.e., in synchrony). This synchronicity was disrupted as soon as someone on one the Earths sighted the other Earth. According to Rhoda, this synchronicity disruption occurred a few days before the fatal accident.
From the moment the synchronicity was broken, life on Earth Two simply went a completely different course than life on Earth One. Maybe Rhoda 2 missed the party where she got drunk and so the accident never happened. Maybe the car of John 2 wasn’t at the crossing. Endless possibilities.
Of course, there are arguments that could refute the Broken Mirror Theory.
For example, even if Earth Two was to miraculously wander in space with an accompanying Sun and Moon, every slight change in orbit, would be enough for synchronicity to be broken. People from Earth Two would surely have experienced many different things that people from Earth One would never have experienced.
I think we should simply ignore the plot hole, and assume that the inhabitants of Earth Two were oblivious to moving in space.
At the end of the film, Rhoda 1 is stunned to see her doppelgänger from Earth Two. Why did Rhoda 2 visit Rhoda 1?
As explained above, according to Dr. Berendzen, the proponent of the Broken Mirror Theory, the synchronicity of events between the two Earths was broken, once they sighted each other. According to Rhoda this happened over 4 years ago, a few days before the accident that took the life of John’s wife and son.
Now, assuming Rhoda is correct, it is safe to assume that Earth Two is nothing like Earth One. As Rhoda speculates, John’s wife and son could still be alive, and, by extension, the fatal car accident might never have happened.
This is corroborated by the appearance of Rhoda 2. There is a noticeable contrast in the clothing: since the accident, Rhoda 1 chose to wear loose clothing, such as tracking suits, loose jeans, and occasional long skirts. Rhoda 2, in contrast, is wearing a more classic style – in the bonus material, the meeting of the two Rhodas was shot twice (once in Summer and once in Winter), and in both scenes Rhoda 2 is clearly wearing more elegant clothes that Rhoda 1.
With this only clue, we can speculate that the producers wanted us to believe Rhoda 2 is well-off, and did not go through the struggles Rhoda 1 has.
But why is Rhoda 2 on Earth One? Was there also a contest on Earth Two that she won?
Hmmm, unlikely.
First of all, what would be the chances she would win? After all, it’s likely that Rhoda 2 is an astrophysicist, but without the accident, she is just another person.
The billionaire that came up with this competition was moved by Rhoda’s 1 story, a story which Rhoda 2 is oblivious of.
In addition, John 1 went to Earth Two four months before the two Rhodas met. Assuming that the Earths are technological identical, why did Earth One not receive visitors from Earth Two?
I think it’s more likely that there was no contest in Earth Two.
But, if that’s the case, why did Rhoda 2 visit Rhoda 1?
The interpretation I’m more inclined to believe is that Rhoda 2 met John 1, and John 1 told Rhoda 2 about the struggles of Rhoda 1 back on Earth One. Remember that John 1 left Earth One four months before Rhoda 2 visited Rhoda 1.
So maybe Rhoda 2 felt compelled to visit Earth One to offer some support to Rhoda 1. After all, Rhoda appears kind and compassionate with people around her (e.g., with the blind janitor).
Moreover, Rhoda is presented to us as a super talented student, that got into MIT, so she would presumably qualify for the journey.
As the story progresses, we are never doubting that the events of the film are happening on Earth One, the Earth you and I are standing on.
But do we have any evidence that that is the case?
What made me question whether Earth One is really Earth One was something John says when Rhoda tells him she signed up for the competition to Earth Two:
“We call ourselves Earth One and them Earth Two. You think they called themselves Earth Two?”
John’s point is very good. Who is to say that the events we are witnessing in the film are happening on Earth One?
I’m assuming here that Earth One is the Earth that remained in the region of space that we are familiar with (in the Milky Way galaxy), and that Earth Two is the Earth that trespassed our solar system.
As I mentioned in the section Will I ever meet my doppelgänger(s)?, two identical Earths cannot possibly inhabit the same “universe” (or patch), let alone in the same galaxy. Clearly, one of the Earths must have been in transit across the universe until it ran into our solar system.
However fantastic this idea is, if Earth really roamed about the universe, the effects on the planet would be so extreme (e.g., there would be extreme alterations in temperature, gravity, Earth’s rotation, etc.) that it’s likely no living thing would be able to survive.
Maybe we could get away with the explanation that the entire solar system (i.e., the Sun, the other planets, all the asteroids and comets) just went along on the cruise. But then we face yet another conundrum: if there are two identical solar systems in the same region of space, shouldn’t we also be seeing two Suns?
So let’s set aside the plot hole, and imagine you are one of the inhabitants living on the Earth travelling across space. Even though you are the one roaming about the galaxy, you do not feel any different – there is no change in gravity, no alteration of sea levels, no unusual volcanic activity, etc.
From your perspective, the Earth you see on the sky is the “Earth Two”.
So, you see, there is absolutely no reason to believe that “Earth One” in the movie is our Earth.
Unfortunately, not many clues abound that would allow us to make an educated guess. In fact, the production team was very careful to include a moon orbiting “Earth Two”, so that this ambiguity would be preserved.
I then thought maybe it is Earth One that does not have a Moon. In fact, I don’t remember the Moon being shown or even referenced at any point in the movie.
Although intriguing, it’s almost certain that there was a Moon on Earth One as well.
If you notice at about minute 09:16 into the film (when Rhoda is considering entering the competition for a visit to Earth Two), there is a poster of our Moon hung on the wall just behind Rhoda. Well, if the Earth where Rhoda was living really did not have a Moon, why would she have a poster of the moon that looks exactly like our natural satellite?
Of course, whether Earth One is really Earth One or Two has absolutely no impact on the story. Nevertheless, I find it curious that we are assuming from the the beginning that the events on the film are happening on Earth One (our Earth), when in fact, they may be happening on Earth Two.
Another Earth was a nice change of mood from all the over-the-top extra-planetary sci-fi films I had been watching.
The melancholy evinced by Rhoda and John was touching, and the inner struggle of both characters really came out in the movie – to me, Brit Marling and William Mapother are two very talented and underrated actors.
My only criticism is that, in my opinion, there should have been more care with the science behind the film. As mentioned in the Introduction, a simple consideration of the effects that the proximity of Earth Two had on Earth One would be fitting. The exchange of the ticket to Earth Two, as if it were a simple raffle ticket, was also somewhat absurd.
Having said that, we watch movies for the entertaining aspect, and I was entertained.
The main idea of the film is that the sighting of Earth Two broke the synchronicity of events between the two Earths – this is the Broken Mirror Theory. Of course, it’s a completely fictitious theory, but I thought it was snappy. They even had a real astrophysicist discussing it on TV during one the movie scenes, which I thought was a nice touch.
The disruption of synchronicity meant that the accident might not have occurred on Earth Two, so Rhoda gives her ticket to John to go on the journey to Earth Two in her place. A few months after John’s departure, Rhoda2 from Earth Two arrives on Earth One, perhaps to comfort Rhoda1 at John’s request. Based on what Rhoda2 is wearing, she probably didn’t endure the same vicissitudes as Rhoda1 and probably went on to become a successful astrophysicist.
Also, had the synchronicity not be broken, it should have been John2, and not Rhoda2, showing up on Earth One.
Finally, I briefly mentioned the possibility that Earth One may actually be Earth Two, the implications of which I’ll leave for the comments section.
This was my first article in which I had the opportunity to discuss the universe. And I genuinely loved it!!!
It’s a sobering thought that with an infinite universe there is the very real possibility that there are an infinite amount of Earths out there with someone that looks and behaves just like me.
How would we react if that theory could be proven true? Quoting directly from the movie:
“Can I go meet me? Is that me better than this me? Can I learn from the other me? Has the other me made the same mistakes I’ve made? Can I sit down and have a conversation with me?”
Man, how I wished I could know the answer to those questions! 🙂
See you in the next article!
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