MovieChat Forums > The Secret Agent (1996) Discussion > Question about ending (spoiler)

Question about ending (spoiler)

posted 16 years ago by bmcpbennet
3 replies | jump to latest

What exactly is Robin Williams' character hanging onto right before the film concludes? Is it a hand grenade? Would someone explain this part? Thanks.

[–] Edward_de_Vere 16 years ago

Williams ("The Professor") is holding onto a detonator for an explosive device, which he ignites when pushing his way into the center of as big of a crowd as possible to maximize the damage.

In the novel, "The Professor's" life's work was creating the perfect explosive device with a fail-proof detonator. Some say that the character was an inspiration for the Unabomber.

[–] bmcpbennet 16 years ago

Thanks for the info. It was very interesting and explains a lot.

[–] DM-DAAN 15 years ago

Sorry, not to insult you or anything but do people even really watch the movies they're "watching" nowadays? Sometimes the answers to the questions you run into on boards like these are so obvious, if you make an effort of really watching a movie that is. On another thread somebody had the nerve to ask how it was that Christian Bale's character Stevie died...

Considering this post: tt was right there, in the movie. Robin Williams has a whole scene in which he explains his detonator.