Being There: A Blade of Grass in the Concrete Jungle?

Okay, so I finally got around to watching "Being There" (1979) and I'm honestly still processing it. Peter Sellers is phenomenal, obviously. The way he embodies Chance the gardener is just... unnerving. It's not just the blank slate he presents, but the perfect blank slate. You almost start to believe he's as simple as he seems, and then you question yourself. Is it a put-on? Is he a savant? Or just a guy who really, really likes gardening? The bit where he's talking about seasonal growth patterns and everyone in the media interprets it as a profound economic forecast? Comedy gold. But it's more than just funny, it's a razor-sharp satire of how easily people in power project meaning onto nothing. I mean, the President of the United States taking gardening advice seriously? It's absurd, but sadly plausible given the level of discourse we deal with today. Shirley MacLaine also does a great job. Her character is so desperately trying to find something in Chance, some hidden depth, that she completely misses the point. The whole situation with her misinterpreting his actions is... uncomfortable. It's played for humor, but it also highlights the power dynamics and her own loneliness, I think. I'm not entirely sure what the point of it all is, though. Is it a condemnation of superficiality? A celebration of simplicity? Or just a really well-executed character study wrapped in a darkly comedic package? Maybe it's a bit of all three. One thing's for sure, I'll be thinking about "Being There" for a while. I'm giving it a solid 8/10. Anyone else have thoughts on this one?