MovieChat Forums > Jerry and Tom (1998) Discussion > Does the ending make any sense? (SPOILE...

Does the ending make any sense? (SPOILERS)

posted 12 years ago by GuyOnTheLeft
4 replies | jump to latest

I had seen this years ago, but don't remember the details (I see so many movies). I watched the end of it just now and find myself a bit confused. Was it really necessary to go through such an elabourate ruse to kill the Sam Rockwell character? Why not say "hey, meet me at such and such place at such and such time" and then just kill him without the whole fake hostage scenario? And then why was Joe Mantegna's character killed?

Seems like there were perhaps a number of twists that were there for their own sake without a logical basis; but I'm willing to be set straight if I've got it wrong.

[–] MrSiegal 11 years ago

Because the decision was being made on whether or not to kill them both. The way it was done just made things so much easier because of the element of total surprise. Jerry had no clue that Tom and Stan were really there to kill him and Tom had no clue that Stan was there to kill him. If the call (literally and figuratively) was not to kill them, neither would be any the wiser to how close they came to being killed.

And also because it was a very good plot twist.

How do the angels get to sleep when the Devil leaves his porch light on?

[–] GuyOnTheLeft 11 years ago

Ha, I think the last sentence is really more what it's about; but the first paragraph is still a pretty good attempt.

--------
See a list of my favourite films here: http://www.flickchart.com/slackerinc

[–] MrSiegal 11 years ago

Yeah, but it's a plot twist that actually also makes sense.

How do the angels get to sleep when the Devil leaves his porch light on?

[–] Teach417 9 years ago

Killing Jerry actually makes a lot of sense, since he had clearly gone off the rails, and was screwing up. Doing it this way took him off guard, making the kill easier. Maybe Billy thought that Tom was at least partly responsible for Jerry's screw ups, or was losing it himself, and really was "getting too old for this *beep* What got me was how all these guys, from Macy's character to Vic to Jerry and Tom kept getting taken by surprise. You'd think professional hitters would be more on their guard, and more alert to what was coming.

We provide ... Leverage.