I picked up this movie cheap and while I enjoyed it fine it made me a little uncomfortable because unless I’m missing something it appears to be pretty much condoning vigilantism.
Jodie Fosters character appears to get off pretty much scot-free after quite few murders after being covered by her potential boyfriend/cop/protector.
I didn’t think the ‘happy’ ending was really in tone with the rest of the movie, in fact at the end I was fully expecting that the denouement was going to be Fosters character forcing the detective to shoot her, and I think that would have been a stronger, if less commercially-friendly, way of wrapping things up.
Terrance Howards character handing the gun over at the end seemed totally, well out of character.
Thoughts?
It wasn’t out of character. Once he realized what she was doing, and more importantly why, he didn’t feel that she should be put into prison because of it.
Just out of curiosity, did you ever see the movie ‘Death Wish’. IIRC, people in the movie theater actually cheered when Charles Bronson shot a mugger.
Well unless I missed something (always a distinct possibility) she was simply taking revenge on those who wronged her at least partially because she felt she wouldn’t get proper redress from the system. Thats an argument for redressing the system not taking the law into your own hands. Edited to add that as a semi-famous radio hostess she was in an excellent position to do so.
I just don’t think that what she was doing was very laudable, viscerally satisfying certainly, but only in a fantasy sense. We have law and order for a reason. (as imperfect as it is)
Howard’s character was depicted as a man of the law and someone who was willing to stand up for his principles, I think it would have been nobler to arrest her and let justice be served rather than let his own feelings take over.
Sorry, but it just didn’t ring true for me given what had been shown of him before. But again, just my interpretation of the story.
Never seen that one, as I said I did enjoy the film, I just wasn’t sure I liked the message it appeared to be sending. It would have been better and a cleaner ending in my opinion if it had showed Fosters character getting her revenge but having to accept the bitter consequences of doing so, and in addition the difficult acceptance of Howard’s character adhering to his principles rather than his personal sympathy for Fosters character.