Did you think of Bodhi as a bad guy?
Robbing banks, getting men much younger than himself killed, having Tyler held hostage...or does his charm and good looks and hippie outlook just make him misguided for you?
shareA bad guy, a hypocrite and a leech.
He despises "that system that kills the human spirit" but he actually physically kills people (so that means their spirit too, yes...) and his idea of life is to have fun with his buddies until they run out of money and then steal the wealth produced by the very "guys inching their way on the freeways in their metal coffins" he despises so much and rants against, so he can sustain his lifestyle.
He contributes nothing to society but vague pseudo-philosophical new-agey soundbites. He's the criminal equivalent of an activist teenager in a Che Guevara T-shirt living with mom and dad, who neither pays for the bills nor does his own laundry.
His ideas, philosophy and politics are shallow and misguided (and lead to murder) but, as you say, we believe him because he's young, cool and good looking. I think it was very smart of Bigelow to have him be played by Swayze as a seductive roguish anti-hero everybody falls in love with, because that's how sociopathic narcissists like Bodhi are usually perceived in real life (at least when you first encounter them...).
Had Utah had the courage to shoot him at the waterway, he would have saved lots of lives, including his partner.
I guess that's the power of that sociopathic narcissist.
Even at the end, instead of him being placed under arrest and facing responsibility for his crimes, he is let go to die a hero for taking on a once in a lifetime wave. That's assuming he does die. They left it open for a sequel I felt.
I agree that he is a bad guy, but Busey’s character did say they didn’t kill anyone until the last heist. And, in his mind, he is stealing from the banks, not the little guy. It’s kind of like the logic of De Niro’s character in Heat. That they want the banks money, not the people’s money, since the bank is FDIC insured.
shareyeah ,
everything MichaelJPollock said is correct , but at the end of the day they wernt hurting anybody .
You could equally say a lottery winner is living off the efforts of everyone else .
Then again , when he took the lady hostage and arranged her time locked execution , I'd say he crossed the line!
"If one believes Homer, Sisyphus was the wisest and most prudent of mortals. According to another tradition, however, he was disposed to practice the profession of highwayman. I see no contradiction in this."
-Camus
This seemingly inherent contradiction is likely what the writers had in mind with Bodhi. There is no definite answer here besides what one's personal values lend to an assessment.