MovieChat Forums > Over the Top (1987) Discussion > The heartwarming ending: Hawk ruins his ...

The heartwarming ending: Hawk ruins his son's life

posted 10 years ago by TerminalMan
16 replies | jump to latest

So, the kid was in an elite military school, being cared for by his wealthy grandfather - who is portrayed as the villain by trying to take care of the boy. Everything the grandfather did were with his grandson's best interests at heart, trying to save him from Hawk - the guy who abandoned the kid. Now let's see: Hawk sticks his son behind the wheel of a fully-loaded big rig and let's him drive for the first time in his life on a state highway, so they can bond over a bit of reckless endangerment; when told he's not allowed on the grandfather's property to see the kid, he rams through the house in a semi...which easily could've killed the boy and anyone else in the way, it was pure luck the kid wasn't near the front door - the kid even straight up tells Hawk he feels safer and more secure with his grandfather; so that ending with Hawk and son trucking off into the sunset together is actually depressing as hell when you realize not only is the kid now in custody of the guy who abandoned him and repeatedly endangered his life, that security in his future the grandfather was trying to provide is gone now.

Seriously, there was nothing happy about the way that ended. Hilarious, but not happy at all

[–] Master (1494) 5 years ago

Until Over the Top 2 and he becomes a truck driving Arm Wrestler like his dad and it's done much like The Youtube series Cobra Kai

[–] UncleRuckis (2550) 5 years ago

Being wealthy as a child doesn't automatically make your life better and it sure as hell doesn't make you a better person. Most would make the argument that entitlement throughout ones life will produce a shitty adult. He was clearly an entitled prick at the beginning of the movie and was a much better human being by the end, so if anything, his dad saved his life.

[–] redban (5183) 4 years ago

I think that was the movie’s point.

The grandfather offered a better pathway to a successful life. There was money, education, stability, etc.

But the father, the poor truck-driver, offered love in a way the grandfather didn’t. The love came out in the arm-wrestling scenes, the driving scene (“That wasn’t so hard huh? To smile”), etc.

The movie conveyed the message that a loving yet poor parent beats a well-off guardian.