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Possible connection between Sam and Spence?


At the beginning of the movie, Spence says to Sam "Oh, I know you..." and Sam replies "I doubt it, I would've remembered." Later in the movie, lesson number two is "I don't remember." which implies that there are some things that Sam can't speak about.

What do you guys think? Is there a possibility that they might've crossed paths before?

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No. Spence was an amateur, no experience in the trade, which is why he ralphed after what was probably his first furball, why he couldn't plan an ambush, and why he walked in there in the first place.

He probably stated that he knew Sam simply to make brownie points, like he was a player in the game.

..Joe

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More to the point, since he doesn't "remember" his professional activities, he's saying he already sussed out that Spence was a rank amateur because he would have remembered Spence if they had met.

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Of course this is pure speculation, but what if Spence wasn't exactly an amateur? He might have been ex-SAS, but never actually seen any action, so would have been more of a rookie than an amateur. The man in the wheelchair was (supposedly) reliable, but he got them Sam (CIA assassin) and Gregor (who screwed them over). But their backgrounds probably checked out; yes Sam had been in the CIA, and Gregor had been KGB or similar, and the SAS is less secretive than those, so Spence probably was ex-SAS. Further, what if, like Sam, Spence was also an active government agent, assigned to eliminate Seamus, only nowhere near as competent, and Sam got rid of him because he was worried about Spence ruining his chances by being a screw up? If Sam thought he was British intelligence, it would explain why he just embarrassed him instead of killing him. It would also make sense that the Brits would want to terminate an IRA terrorist in 1998. Again, pure speculation, but plausible.

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