MovieChat Forums > Endless Night (1972) Discussion > Ellie's medicine

Ellie's medicine

posted 12 years ago by CalvinJarrett
3 replies | jump to latest

SPOILER

I didn't quite understand how Michael and Greta poisoned Ellie? There was a brief explanation on the part of Michael to Major Philpot, but I just didn't get it. The split one of Ellie's antihistamine tablets in half and put cyanide in it? Micheal said it had something to do with the wasps? A chemical to kill wasps, was it? How was it that it bore no trace after two hours? I guess I thought the murder occurred many days after the garden party with all the wasps. Anyhow, if someone can make heads or tails of this section of the film, Id appreciate it.

[–] megArnold 12 years ago

The science is a bit loopy in this movie.

I'm not quite sure how cyanide is supposed to kill wasps (maybe it does), but the method was:

Take one of Ellie's antihistamine capsules, open it, empty it and fill it with cyanide powder, which is left over from poisoning the wasps a few days before.

Ellie takes the pill, and within short time, her body can no longer process oxygen (cyanide inhibits that), and she dies of "inner asphyxiation".

Through chemical processes, the cyanide breaks down and can no longer be found in her body after two hours.

In real life, cyanide poinsoning produces a telltale pink skin color, which would have at least raised suspicion in an examination.

--
Hmmm?

[–] CalvinJarrett 12 years ago

Thank you, megAnhalt. It's that kind of explanation that the makers of this movie should have put in the 1972 film. It would have taken just as short a time to recite what you said as it did whatever Philpot and Michael exchanged in the actual film.

[–] hornacek 8 years ago

SPOILER FOR THE BOOK

Ellie makes a friend in the neighborhood who borrows one of her allergy pills (also filled with cyanide) and she also dies. She is found right after she dies and the smell of almonds is detected, indicating cyanide. That makes Uncle Andrew and Philpot suspicious about Ellie's death.