MovieChat Forums > Music from Another Room (1998) Discussion > Argument over final dialogue: Did Daniel...

Argument over final dialogue: Did Daniel call 'tails'?


Caution: Spoiler!

Daniel flipped the two-headed coin in the bakery and Anna called "tails"--but of course Daniel couldn't come out and say it was a "cheating" coin. Anna obviously lied about the call.
Later she "comes around" and admits the truth.
In the final scene between Daniel and Anna, she flips a coin with the same premise: heads, I go with you; tails, you can go and I'll never bother you again.
Same slow-mo toss in the air, and Daniel smacks his foot down on the coin without looking at it: he's looking at Anna.
I could swear he said, "Tails."
Anna tells Daniel she loves him, they embrace, and the scene cuts to Daniel as a little boy, claiming that he will one day marry Anna. It is the smiling Daniel as a child, with that (cryptic?) little smile on his face as the movie fades to black.
There is a feeling of uncertainty, just as romance always has a kind of uncertainty about it.

My boyfriend argues that Daniel called "heads", that I heard it wrong, and that "heads" was the "only logical way".

I disagree. It would make more "romantic" sense for Daniel to do the very same thing Anna did; either they were both acknowledging the earlier scene where both Anna AND Daniel lied, and now the story was coming full-circle, or Daniel needed Anna to (convince/assure) him of her passion and love for him since he had renounced passion (or so he said) to become more "practical" like Anna, while Anna had become more capricious and willing to take the chance on love that Daniel had shown from the beginning--or perhaps it was both.

Obviously, I did not rent this movie, so I cannot just rewind it to play the final scene at the train station.

So my question then, is twofold: What DID Daniel call? Heads or Tails?

And, in the event that he actually did call Heads, can anyone see where Tails would have been the more "romantic" (and really the most honest) way for the movie to conclude?

My boyfriend and I are in disagreement over this. He thinks I am being unromantic, whereas I think I've given it more thought, which is quite contrary to his claim.

Someone please tell me!

reply

He steps on the coin, doesn't even look at it and says "It's heads."

reply

Just watched it, and he clearly says 'Heads'. He doesn't even look at the coin tho.

reply

I just now watched the scene and turned the sound way up. It's a very powerful scene, with amazing chemistry. Just as you say, he doesn't even so much as glance at the coin while she tosses it or after it lands. He is looking straight into her eyes the whole time. He doesn't call it right away; she prompts him. Then he says "It's heads". It actually comes out like 'ts'heads. That's what made you think "tails" - the leading T sound.

I do think you could definitely do something great with the scene along the lines of what you propose, but it is very satisfactorily powerful the way it is too.

reply

I've just watched it and as everyone else has said he definitely said Heads, but I do get where you're going when you say it would have been more romantic if it had been tails. I guess I just thought Eric was too nice of a guy to be left and I didn't particularly like the character of Anna. I sat and watched the movie with no information of what it was about and no preconceptions (I got it free with a magazine so it wasn't like I spent money on it) but I enjoyed it emmensely, however sometimes you just can't have a happy ending and I think that may have worked well in this. I liked it how it was though :)

reply

I only read the first post so I'm sorry if I'm repeating anything.
When Danny calls tails without actually looking at it I think he's showing that it doesn't actually matter whether it says heads or tails but he's saying heads because he loves her and she loves him and they both want to be together and that is all that matters. That is what I got from the scene and loved it. If he said tails it might seem like he thinks they shouldn't be together, but I do get where you're coming from.

"I don't see the point in living if I can't be beautiful." Howl

reply

Yes, the point is, Danny doesn't CARE if it's heads or tails - he loves Anna and he wants to be with her, period.

Come join my Paul Giamatti group - http://movies.groups.yahoo.com/group/talkpaul/?yguid=5754742

reply