Jon Voight was great, especially his speech to the high school students. He deserved the Oscar. But why does it end with Fonda going shopping and Bruce Dern stripping down and swimming in the ocean? What the hell is that about?
I like tacos, 71 Cabernet and my favorite color is magenta. -Fred
Can't believe some posters thought Dern went for a swim. A swim?
The ending was brilliant. She's planning to shop for a barbecue and her life will change dramatically. By the look on her face she's been through hell with her husband.
Perfect movie in every way.
shareI thought it was a memorable ending, something to go back and ruminate over. I went to a suicide prevention workshop. A lot of scientists believe suicide is never peaceful. It is always painful because the body naturally fights against it with all the strength it has left in it. Some believe you can feel your organs dying and it is agony. Survivors of suicide attempts by jumping have said, during the jump, it became crystal clear all of life's problems can be solved except they had just jumped to (what they thought would be) their deaths.
shareWhat I never could understand was how Dern expected to drown himself. I presume he could swim so was he just planning to stay out there in the ocean until he couldn't stay awake anymore and drowned when he fell asleep. I guess this leaves open the liklihood that if he did consider suicide that he had plenty of time to change his mind and swim back to shore, after all his wife was still committed to him to make the marriage work.
shareHis wife betrayed him and so did his country. He felt no reason to live any longer.
shareIf you swim out far enough you would eventually reach the point of no return where you could not physically make it back to shore before your body gave out.
His character in his mind suffered from a lack of courage to be a War Hero. I hate to say it is courageous to die by drowning yourself but damn that would require an incredible amount of courage to do something like that. Also remember as many who fought war have said, there is a fine line between Courage and Stupidity. In his distorted mind as with most suicides there is I believe a sense of Heroism and Nobility by the act. Ancient Romans would have the opportunity to commit suicide if overthrown or found in scandel for instance. And we all know of the Japanese Romanticism with Hari Kari. Swimming off into the ocean has been portrayed in films before this one. One that comes to mind is a very old Frederick March movie. There is this romanticism and Heroism behind this act. The Dern character may have found himself at this decision without his wife ever having an affair in the first place.
From the outside looking in however we see it as a tragedy. Another Victim of the war. Jon Voight a victim of the war. Jane Fonda now a victim of the War. Her best friend and her suicidal brother played by Robert Carradine victims of the war. So a war that was fought half way around the world left in it's wake victims alive and dead. That's really the main message of this film. The movie is a tragedy for sure. In the broadest scope.
But is there any hope in the ashes of that war's impact? Sure there is. Jane Fonda and Jon Voight found true love and they have a chance to move forward. Her best friend Vie is now engaged (be it to a guy coming back from war mind you although his character never seems to be bothered by Nam and is described as tearing it up over there) and she has a future. Life will keep going for the survivors. What will they make of it?
He wanted to be a hero - I believe he comes right out and says that. Then he accidentally shoots himself in the leg, gets sent home and the military now honors him as a hero, but he knows damn well he doesn't deserve it. The thing he valued most, being a hero - is now just crap, and he probably knows now it's been mostly crap all along. That which he valued most cannot be. What's he have to live for now? Didn't seem like he had anything else in his life - he didn't really value much his girlfriend played by Fonda.
I also wondered why he wouldn't instead shoot himself - but then he probably figured he'd be again presented as a hero - who died from gunshot - which he wasn't. Going swimming, drowning, maybe never being found - would avoid all that dishonest crap he was so heart broken about.