Todd Solondz’ Palindromes shows our world as a character gallery where each character has his or her own unique set of flaws and virtues. There are no heroes or villains here. Even if one chose to discern between the two, the heroes have flaws and the villains have virtues. People are who they are, for better or for worse, and there is no room for change.

            The film contends that people are palindromatic: we are the same, forwards and backwards: we always end up the way we started out. We cannot change. While some people may see this as depressing, the film, in its objectivity, does not. Of course, this way of thinking leaves no room for salvation, but on the other side of the coin, it also leaves no room for damnation.