I thought the ending left too many loose ends -
* what happens with Jeff Daniels - he gets the letter to give up his badge, that's it?
* what about Stoltz, how does he end up and what about the girl from the massage place?
* so Teri Hatcher just goes off into the sunrise?
I thought it was strange Hatcher seemed to get away with it, and I don't see how Stolz would have just let the guy walk away with the money. Its seems to me he would have tried to figure it out.
People can have fun tying up the loose ends with their own interpretations but I don't think the Daniels character was intended to be a loose end. He was just angry and him having to give up his badge just means that the massage girl is now safe.
It also didn't make sense that Spader hit Stolz in the head. That character would have just shot him.
It could have been a really good movie, but I think it got kind of sloppy at the end.
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On the ending: Point one: Detective Strayer will be okay in the end. Why? Because he did not kill the black guy or commit suicide (Probably because of his kid), he will get the help he needs (Even if he is stuck on a desk job for the rest of his life). As far as point two is concerned, keep in mind that hitman Dosmo (Aiello), was willing to risk his life for a cop (Eric Stolz) that he never met before, so Detective Taylor letting him have the money and start his life over with Susan (Glenn Headley)was worth it (Particularly when he turned over his gun to Teddy Peppers (Paul Mazursky). Point three: Becky Foxx (Hatcher) gets away because it is the theme of the film. Second chances for life's losers (She lost a spot on the Olympic Team due to injury). This applies to Strayer, Dosmo, Susan (Abused by her snobbish boss Allen Hopper, only gets respect when Dosmo makes him eat on the floor with his dog (Who he treated better than her), while she sits at the table with him), Peppers who wanted to commit suicide after he found someone to take care of his dog, ends up saving both Dosmo and Taylor from evil Lee Woods (James Spader) who was going to kill them in cold blood by shooting him. It enables him to get his confidence back and be able to start over with Audrey (Marsha Mason). One other point, about Peppers, you see in the final scene with Audrey, that he is very different than before, and will not only get a reward from the City for saving Taylor, but since he is in screenwriter, he can tell a story (leaving Dosmo & Susan out of course), that could get him a huge advance. Think about it: A Hollywood writer saves a cop, Warner Bros, Paramount, Universal and all the rest will bid on that. I would figure, that should be worth six figures to him. For that reason and for killing evil "Ice Queen" Charlize Therron, she should get away.
shareI know this is a few years after the original post but:
We are dropped into the middle of this with not a lot of backstory. Just broad strokes. We are asked to make our character judgments mostly on the actions on the screen.
I think it's a great ending. I get to decide who does what.
Probably one of the reasons for some low ratings.
That and all the up front sexual play.
In 1996 critics were wary of giving good reviews to films like this.
The pumps don't work 'cause the Vandals stole the handles
Bob Dylan
i would have preferred for Spader's character to have lived and gotten away