MovieChat Forums > Made in Heaven (1987) Discussion > I don't get the ending

I don't get the ending

posted 15 years ago by annmason1
25 replies | jump to latest

Can someone explain this STRANGE movie?

The set-up in heaven seems to promise these two folks'll find each other despite their earthly separation. We follow the course of their lives only to reach the climax of... WHAT? I mean, is the dude hit by a car just as he sees his soul mate? I don't get it! What's the point??

I feel like the Thurber cartoon when the guy is following a bug up the stairs. Up up the bug crawls in frame after frame while the guy follows him. The last frame shows the bug going under a closed door while the guy stands there watching it.

At first I didn't get the joke, and then realized that I was the joke; anyone who is dumb enough to follow the guy following the bug is dumber than said guy.

That's how "Made in Heaven" strikes me. I watched scene after scene until finally, the bug gets hit by a truck. So who's dumber?

What is the point of this film??

[–] baker88 15 years ago

I actually just watched this for the first time and I think what happened in the end is that Emmett brought him back for just a moment to let him know that his time was up for finding Annie but because she found him, he got to go back. I think that's why Emmett wished him a Happy Birthday. He finally got the gift he'd been wanting and that was Annie and Emmett wanted him to know. Hopefully that makes a little sense? :-)

[–] Oleoay 15 years ago

The point is, once Elmo sees Annie, he has an epiphany. The fragmented lives, subconscious suggestions (playing the piano, reading Annie's book, creating the song "We Never Danced") etc. all fit together. He remembers his life in Heaven and meeting Annie there. Even his dreams about dancing with Annie make sense. In other words, he's complete, whole, and "in tune" with Annie, who has a similar epiphany. The meeting with Emmett is a validation that Elmo's found his purpose, and solves from Elmo's limited Earth-only perspective, why Emmett was urging Elmo to remember his purpose of finding Annie.

[–] 15 years ago

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[–] ddlewiss 15 years ago

It was a good movie but for me I have never liked those kinds of endings. Give me ten more seconds to see their reaction. I don't want to figure it out I want to be told. I saw it once but I never wanted to see it again. It was perfect up until the end.

[–] 15 years ago

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[–] mscott716-1 14 years ago

Yikes! this is why movies are getting so crappy, everyone needs it spelled out for them. I thought it was pretty obvious they found each other. It's like at the end of Cast Away..love how they don't spell it out..but leave it open a little to take where you want it to go next. You know he's going back to her house to meet the lady who drew the picture on the box from the little smile on his face(you never know what the tide may bring next)...plus before that they make it a point to show the ranch sign no longer has the husbands name on it, hence shes available. What they don't do is show him going back..I already know I don't need it shown.

[–] RaspyWolf 14 years ago

Ugh. Castaway? Please. Two hours of Tom Hanks alone? That was the first and only movie I left, walked up to the box office and said "You can keep my money, I want my two hours back." Wilson was the best actor in that whole movie. The only redeeming quality it had was the fact that years later I read an interview with the writer of the movie and he said that it was one giant exercise in Schadenfreude because what was in the box was a waterproof, solar powered satellite phone.

[–] anarchpatriarch 14 years ago

Yeah...that totally matters. Because you, like, responded to the point he made, and didn't just bash the example he gave to make it...

...You're cool.

-"My days of taking you seriously are certainly coming to a middle."

[–] RaspyWolf 14 years ago

Thanks! It's nice to be appreciated. You're pretty spiffy yourself there kiddo!

[–] netstuff80 14 years ago

I adore this movie. it is actually in my top 5 favourite movies ever. It used to be number one until i discovered Where the Heart Is. Anyway, I digress...... he doesn't get hit by a car. it's simply Emmett telling him that it's all ok now because she managed to find him.

I think regardless what Emmett had told him in Heaven, I believe he had tried to guide them to one another throughout their lives, hence the shared 'memories', near misses etc, and how she was able to sense that he was there behind her and walking away without them ever actually meeting on earth.

It's a simple and beautiful film and I am so glad it exists. Now, I just need to track it down on dvd.......

Keeper of Josef's sarcastic wit, tar pits, suits & "It is so On!"

Wanted: Job as Josef's suit

[–] KBMommy 11 years ago

@mscott716-1 If this movie was so brilliant, why has hardly anyone seen it? It came out the year I graduated high school, I still remember everything about that time! The music and movies especially. And this one, just... ehh.

Please explain why Elmo is naked with cigarette smoking guy - do they reunite between heaven and earth, like the song said?

[–] KBMommy 11 years ago

Wow people treat each other like crap here! :(

>>So you don't get a basic hollywood movie plot or a cartoon, maybe it's time to start doubting your mental ability.<<

Or the OP isn't alone in not understanding that bizarre bit of filmage. I wondered why I didn't see it in the theaters when i started watching today, and then realized i had when a (very!) few scenes seemed familiar.

Mike/Elmo does seem to die and not be in heaven again - and then he is back on the sidewalk, then they are dancing in the dream she had? It was confusing, if you understood it so well, @fourthletter, it would be great if you could explain it to the rest of us whose "mental ability" you choose to make a judgment about.

Bad movie, no help, rude!

[–] TotheWatersandtheWild 9 years ago

Wow people treat each other like crap here! :(

So goes the overcrowded, attention-deficient, gadget-gorging, mind-numbing cesspool that is anonymous internet posting. And the world.

~
All of us get lost in the darkness
Dreamers learn to steer by the stars

[–] Molly-31 13 years ago

I thought the ending was very straightforward. She catches up to him in the crowd at the last minute, they recognize each other, Emmett tells him "it will be all right, she found you", they end up together and remember everything, what's not to understand?

Let's just say that God doesn't believe in me.

[–] Fables 13 years ago

I agree with most except for them remembering everything. I don't believe that it would be that simple for Elmo and Ally to remember everything of their time in heaven as different people. Basicly they are "new people", him a reacarnation of his former life and her a new soul who was born on earth for the first time, so they are actually just meeting each other first time in their present life. I think they recognized each other's faces from the dreams and brief glimpes they had of their former lives in heaven throughout the film, plus they probably unconsciously felt drawn to each other despite being strangers. I agree with the other poster who said that Emmett tried to bring the together with near misses and sensing each other presense at end and brief glimpes of their former lives as lovers. But I don't believe they will just completely remember their former lives in heaven, perhaps continue to have few glimpes here and there, maybe unconciously feel like they known each other but not understanding it.

[–] KBMommy 11 years ago

It seems like the ending is really open to interpretation then. Which can be good :)

[–] Duncan_Idaho02 12 years ago

Can someone explain this STRANGE movie?

Strange to you because you could not comprehend it. Not so to others.

The set-up in heaven seems to promise these two folks'll find each other despite their earthly separation.

It appears you did not watch the film at all. No, it does not promise they will find each other. Emmett clearly said they will eventually find each other again, but it could be hundreds of lifetimes before that happened. So, no, it does not promise they will find each other in this life.

We follow the course of their lives only to reach the climax of... WHAT? I mean, is the dude hit by a car just as he sees his soul mate? I don't get it! What's the point??

Again, you were not paying attention earlier in the movie. The point was that if Elmo went back before it was his time he was only given a certain period of time to find her, in this case, 30 years. On his 30th birthday he is walking down the street and they are next to each other. She keeps walking one way, he the other. They both have a realization/awakening and turn to face each other. As they are having this awakening, Emmett calls Elmo back to tell him happy birthday then sends him right back. He is never hit by a car. Not sure why you came up with that. If you had been paying attention at all you would know that Emmett likes Elmo and is happy for him.

I feel like the Thurber cartoon when the guy is following a bug up the stairs. Up up the bug crawls in frame after frame while the guy follows him. The last frame shows the bug going under a closed door while the guy stands there watching it.

That is because you don't pay very good attention and could not grasp the meaning of this film.

At first I didn't get the joke, and then realized that I was the joke; anyone who is dumb enough to follow the guy following the bug is dumber than said guy.

That's how "Made in Heaven" strikes me. I watched scene after scene until finally, the bug gets hit by a truck. So who's dumber?

Who is more dumb? Maybe the person who has could not pay attention long enough to grasp a simple concept? goodness. Open your mind and watch the film. It is all set up for you at the beginning. It is a love story.

What is the point of this film??

It is a love story. It is a story about finding love, losing it, then finding it again. It is a story about true love that lasts forever.

I am amazed at how many people come on these boards and complain after they obviously did not pay attention to the film at all.

[–] KBMommy 11 years ago

Duncan, just because something made sense to you and not someone else doesn't mean they are dumb, Wow, you are hateful. See, not fun having a stranger tell you who you are, is it?

I remember when we came to this site, before EVERYONE and his dog used FaceBook and found out about imdb, to have discussion. That is what the message boards are for - to talk about TV and film. Not a million "She looks JUST LIKE" (ugh) threads. No one needs to be insulted for asking a perfectly reasonable question.

Did tact DIE when everyone decided to live on the internet?? Just sad, sad people.

[–] Duncan_Idaho02 11 years ago

Hateful because I pointed out the person had obviously not paid attention to the film. It is fairly straight forward. There are confusing movies out there, like Mr. Nobody. This film was not confusing. Now if you were preoccupied while watching you would miss many important things that tell you the story. If that is the case, then go back and watch it again. But the questions asked by the op were explained quite thoroughly.

[–] tdl797 9 years ago

In another post someone says they were a grip on the film and said that they did film a car hitting him at that moment. It could be a troll, but it can not be ruled out by the film that exists as we know it.

It really does feel like it has been edited as a compromise for studio execs. If he actually disappeared in the street, Ally would go nuts. If you see a physical being somewhere and they disappear for a while and then appear again, you wouldn't know what was going on.

It kinda looks like they had to use scenes from earlier in the film and then dubbed new lines where the mouths aren't moving. You can take film of an actor just looking at something and then make up any dialog you want to later.

I guess one way to find out for sure would be to try and ask someone involved in the film on Twitter or e-mail.

[–] rslavin2002 12 years ago

I was just channel surfing and i stopped on this...Movie......Its gotta be the worst movie i have ever seen in my entire life

[–] mikeintoronto 12 years ago

It was soooooooooo bad, you sat through till the end, right ?

[–] jeinoh 11 years ago

I agree. I thought this whole movie was a waste of talent and my time. I love all the actors and musicians in this film but the film itself was pointless. I kept waiting for something to click or for there to be some better near meetings but it just went on and on and on...and then the ending wasn't even an ending. Neither of the two main characters were ever developed to know much about them so you couldn't stay interested in them. If you haven't seen this film, I would say don't bother.

[–] KBMommy 11 years ago

i have to agree with jeinoh. i came to hopefully get some insight into the last two hours I lost, and no one can help - because you're right, it just wasn't good. And i agree, a fabulous cast! And we really aren't invested in the characters, they are together for such a short time. The only bit i cared for was Elmo's ride to California with the parents he no longer remembered. That was lovely.

Kelly's part was never really fleshed out, she was a neat child, but when she as an adult I just didn't get to understand her much except as a woman who is despondent after being left by her husband.

[–] 11 years ago

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