WARNING! Spoiler Alert! Do Not Read Further if you have seen the film!
OK, you've been warned....
So, according to Wikipedia, "The original plan was to have Johnson die at the end, but his fate is left hanging in this film, when Paints His Shirt Red is sent to kill him."
What is THAT all about? I thought he was saluting him and Jeremiah was saluting him back? Not sure if the Wikipedia folks watched a different movie than I did.
Would welcome others interpretations!
Paints His Shirt may have been "sent" to do what others could not but does not want to in the end. Paints His Shirt shows that he is graciously(honoring the warrior Johnson) letting Johnson go (You've suffered enough, kid) but Jeremiah isn't all that sure it's over. He struggles with letting it be over there and then. Struggles. Is it ever going to be over? Read Vardis Fisher's Mountain Man (novel) and then Crow Killer (real story of Liver Eating Johnston). Sidney and Bob had a hard time deciding how it was going to end as they merged the two books. Their intention was that the two warriors meet and respectively agree to make peace.
shareGreat explanation. Thanks much, Joanne-150!
shareI wonder if there were several possible endings filmed for the movie. Because I at first drew the same conclusion that Paints-His-Shirt-Red was ending the war between Johnson and the Crow but after purchasing and watching the movie several times I think that a battle was about to ensue. The expression on Redford's face was not one of finality and relief that it was all over. It went from kind of read of his former friend and the salute and then turned to anger at the very end.
sharein my point of veiw of the ending i see when paints his shirt raises his hand at johnson its a sign of peace and thats why johnson raises his hand eagerly for peace because both of them are tired of fighting and they want to live the wat they did years ago before all the fighting. but thats jus my take on it all
am i who you think i am or am i someone you never thought of
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And some folks say he's up there still. Jeremiah Johnson made his way into the mountains...
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