MovieChat Forums > Tokyo Joe Discussion > Question about the ending (SPOILERS)

Question about the ending (SPOILERS)

posted 14 years ago by doleman
7 replies | jump to latest

Just curious if anyone knows if he lived or died at the end of the movie. The way the surgeon said his would was pretty bad and just pretty much left him alone told me he wasn't going to make it.

[–] ralecar 14 years ago

I am also very curious as to whether he lives or dies at the end. For a second I thought he might die then after thinking about I figured he might live. What the hell? LOL.

[–] liquidgardener 14 years ago

While it is certainly left up in the air, the write up in "The Films Of Humphrey Bogart" indicates he dies at the end (the DVD cover says that for saving his daughter there are fatal consequences, again indicating that he dies, but...?). I'd like to think not; at this point in Bogie's career, and that he was basically a good guy here, there's no reason for his character to die.

And kind of wondering why the Japanese man whom Bogie flies back from Korea has a German Luger?

[–] noobzilla 13 years ago

Hes also the good guy who dies at the end in sirocco... a similar movie..

-- 'you're a good man, sister.' Humphrey Bogart

[–] Bann (1) 7 months ago

It probably wasn’t a Lugar. The Japanese had a similar design that fired an 8mm round called the Nambu type 14. Some Lugars were shipped to Japan as they were allied during the war.

[–] NYCtoNV 13 years ago

The closing shot is of Trina from Joe's point of view. It doesn't just fade out, it blurs. This is done to indicate that the viewer (Joe) dies.

"Are my eyes really brown?"

[–] bullit2513 13 years ago

I agree with jtcbrt that Joe doesn't make it. We know he's been shot at least a couple times in the back, and as a character, he did what he was supposed to. For a movie in the late 1940s, they're not going to break up the Landis family, and Joe righted the wrongs he did in the past to Trina by saving his daughter. Very much the tragic character/figure for Bogie.

"Congratulations, Major. It appears that at last you have found yourself a real war." Ben Tyreen

[–] Jason_Radley 12 years ago

I agree that according to Hollywood logic Joe must go, but that makes the decision to leave it open-ended all the more interesting. The last thing the doctor says to the commanding officer is 'Very bad, sir, but we'll try and pull him through.'