About the ending
Could someone PLEASE explain the ending to me?
What actually happens to Simon?
My explanation is:
He says: "There are bad guys who can help you but won't, then there are good guys who want to help you, but can't. I'm a good guy." (or something similar)
The point is that he can't help the main character. He is a good guy, but he can't help. All he can do is to take out the brain so the corporation can't use it in their research. (It seems our good old main character didn't get this as well. He thought he would receive help)
A lot of people I know didn't completely get the ending. But for me this is the most logical one. The one which explains the most. This is also a grat thing about the movie. It leaves a lot up to your imagination
Thanks for the explanation.
Just one more question :
Is Nile a good guy or a bad guy?
Good question. Again I don't know the right answer since this movie lets so much up to you'r imagination.
You should think he is a good guy because he is one of the victims, or so he says.
I don't think he is one of the bad guys, but I can understand why Simon might think so because of his paranoia. He is first brought into the movie after the infection, so he doesn't seem like the most obvious person for the bad guys to hire.
On the other side we have the blood sample - it is a bit suspicious!
Dont forget that Nile got Simon the upgrade. Thats more than suspicious - it's clear that Nile is working for the corporation. Besides he says just before leaving "I am sorry, I am realy sorry" after delivering the upgrade. So he feels guilt because he likes Simon as a friend, but he has to do his job - again it's clear he works for the corporation :)
share
Now Nile, is a different story..... played amazingly by Eugene Byrd .... and don't forget that new version 1.1.5 "upgrade", where he went out and bought all those lovely FARM products, and not just dee milk, which dee virus 1.0 originally got Simon addicted too.....
In dee very near future, if not now, Nile is dee "techno pusher", maybe working for FARM, or maybe working to get a peice-of-dee-action for himself..... your guess is as good as mine!!!!
Shanger out....
I think Nile thought the upgrade was ok, that's why he didn't answer the phone anytime later in the movie... He probably got killed by the bugs in the new software...
share
Your quote is very accurate, and your logical conclusion is exactly what dee filmmakers Matti & Jef intended!!!
Rennember, lance Hendrickson (Icelandic spelling folks), as Howard, gave Simon J.("J" stands for Jeremy (Sisto) folks), those and dee lovely crickets Howard gave him for his birthday... (rennember)... in dee scene Howard's basement dwelling where he made a home-made procscutto'n'provolone sandwich, with dee stinky-foot cheese, and he washed it down with home-made vino, which he also got from dee village back home... In other words, Howard is Simon's best-friend, (and dee only one he can trust)
Well those so those crickets were an early warning deviece exclusively for Howards' ears only, so-to-speak...... (see) he had to get there before dee FARM-agents arrived, and "remmove there haerd-drives", and then store it some where secret, until such time as to dee code is craked and Simon J. hard-drive gets "restored somehow????? (2.0 folks)
If dee farm AGENTS GOT THERE FIRST, (like dee other neighbour who died at dee begining, in dee elevator), then that already means that the body was already dead and dee nanomites have triggerred some remote death switch (or something like that).... so, dee FARM agents go for immediate extraction'n'removal of dee body in under 5-minute..... But Howards trick is very sinister towards FARM, instead of "dee 1.0 virus calling its maker to collect dee body", he has dee falling down of dee crickets trigger dee disstress, because he has to remove dee head (ie, hard-drive), while dee body is still alive, or else there is nothing he can do..... Howard did save dee Landlord's and naughty-neighbour's heads, as well as you know who? (ssssssshhh)
If ever its made, 2.0 should be wild, wild, wild!!!!
Shanger out....
I tried reading what the h.e. double hockey stick you wrote, but I cannot *beep* understand a word you're saying... What friggin' ghetto hood you cookin' from? >.<
sharegshanger
a piece of advice free...go to a *beep* school.
jesus... are you people daft??? Gshanger had something to do with the movie... either the writer or director... obviously you people have never read any Irvine Welsh or else turning "Dee" into "The" in your mind wouldnt be much of a problem.....
Anyway... good movie for the first 3/4ths... then it got preachy.... kind of like U2... or M.A.S.H.
I give it a 7.5
Covenant
"jesus... are you people daft??? Gshanger had something to do with the movie... either the writer or director... obviously you people have never read any Irvine Welsh or else turning "Dee" into "The" in your mind wouldnt be much of a problem....."
I've never read Irvine Welsh and I still understood what he was getting at. I just figured he was some crazy German guy getting all ethnic on us here...
hehehehe, well that is entirely possibly.. those wacky germans...
Covenant
The "Dee" thing was entirely un-necessary and irritating.
Being a Scot and having read several books from Irvine Welsh ... I have no memory where "The" was pronounced or written "Dee" ... care to ellaborate?
Anyway this Movie took 3 attempts to watch it and if it wasn't for Nile (the only character that wasn't dull and 2 dimensional) I wouldn't have bothered.
Overall it was bearable 5/10.
dee shanger here.....
Wow! dee internet is wonderful, anonymity and interactivity!!!!!!!!!!!!!
People think I might be Gerrrrrrrr-man, eh!!!! Or a great Scot (WELSH, EH!)..... Wow.
Well folks, I did play dee Sex Club Bouncer in 1.0. AND really does it really bother you lovely folks that I switch from "THE" to 'DEE", mentally its an easy switch, but WOW, I in a quarter-century of using it it never got such a response. Well maybe this will help, I don't really know, but if you are really interested, I'm from Toronto. Just curious, where are you lovely folks from??????
dee shanger
PS - I love dese bloody comments, right on:::::::::::::::::::
"I've never read Irvine Welsh and I still understood what he was getting at.
I just figured he was some crazy German guy getting all ethnic on us here..."
"hehehehe, well that is entirely possibly.. those wacky germans..."
"What friggin' ghetto hood you cookin' from?"
PPS - I am also a filmmaker, but not of 1.0
PPPS - I thought Nile might even be dee devil...
I found dee shanger's partial explanation of the plot to be helpful.
(who cares about how he wrote it - I thought it was stylish and didn't require translation to be understood - people are just generally rude to each other over the internet for no good reason)
The movie was very sombre and depressing but well made and the atmosphere was consistent throughout. The acting was pretty solid.
More audio explanation of what exactly was going on would have made it easier to understand and watch.
The movie's depressing atmosphere was relentless. A scene with a little sunlight, a couple of trees and a smiling face would have been a welcome reprieve from the seedy, dark and depressing cityscape.
The director clearly wanted the movie's atmosphere to be as dark and as far from home and happiness as possible...this was done very well.
There is a trend nowadays with movies being too much on the dark, dirty and decayed side with no hope, happiness or humour. I believe a mix of both attributes, done subtlety, wouldn't sacrifice the artistic outcome of a movie or take away from its style. This way it would be little less extreme and closer to reality for most North Americans and more easy to relate to.
The love scene brought a little light to the movie, but was very short and led to nothing.
This is just my opinion, having watched quite a few pretty hard to take movies over the past few years. I can appreciate the artistic value of them however, done in this fashion.
This is defintely a movie that has to be watched a few times to understand it better.
My Score: 7.5/10
(It's a keeper for the collection)
Hawk20011
I have nothing to say about the movie. I just wanted to comment on how irritating shanger is. Who cares if its easy to understand that "Dee" means "The"? Does that make it any less annyoing? I think not.
shareHawks20011 wrote:
"The love scene brought a little light to the movie, but was very short and led to nothing."
I think it definitely led to something - if you notice the scene towards the very end with Trish laying in her bed, the camera focuses in on her belly. It is intended to give the impression that she is carrying Simon's child.
Paranoia 2.0 anyone?
By the way, I think I have a defective DVD. The scene where Simon and Trish are together in her apartment, where he comes on to her so urgently and she says "Gentle .... I don't love you." and Simon says <g> "I don't love you either" followed by Trish saying "Come inside" (double-meaning if there ever was one) I saw the movie at a screening in Toronto (G Shanger was there, too!) and was able to hear the dialogue for the first time without having to read their lips. It's weird because I can hear the background noise, just not the dialogue.
the "dee" to replace "the" was so obvious, and took but a moment to make the mental switch. The creativity in that usage was interesting and appreciated. It is unfortunate that so many posts digressed to deal with such an unchallenging facet of a informative post.
I enjoyed the movie, and assume the director knew what he was doing, and had planned to do, and so will say the movie ended as it was supposed to, without any need for ten additional minutes. There are a few reasons such films are not made by large hollywood companies, and one is that they are appreciated by a much smaller, but assumed more intelligent audience.
I was able to see the movie on three levels, and enjoy movies that don't lead me around by the nose, but compell thought instead. It would seem apparent that i dont like many movies then.
Incidentally, Howard is the maintinence man, not the landlord, and did not have a "robot". Derrick, a neighbor of Simons, did have a facimile of a human head for comfort and to simulate the child he never had. The head was merely a convinient conduit for an AI program. sigh.
Thank you, gshanger, for your explanation of the ending and the filmakers intentions. I have only seen the movie once, so far, and now that I have more insight into it I will pay closer attention to all of the details. I watched it this morning (at 3am, PDT) when I was just off to bed and wasn't prepared to do much "thinking" (as this movie clearly wishes/forces you to do) so I needed some clarification.
I love all of the lead actors in it and I believe all in the film did a great job at bringing such strange characters to life. I, too, wish there was a lot more of "Niles" on the screen not just because of the actor who portrayed him, Eugene Byrd, but because he seemed to be the only one "playing with a full deck"-as we say here in the States. The rich, dark colors were quite beautiful and I was amazed at how large those apartments were with the gorgeous wood floors and walls. They would ask a king's ransom for it where I live. And I too thought the outdated electronics were an interesting touch because it makes the film timeless. We cannot, or will not be able to in the future, pin-point it's exact date in time.
And, gshanger, when will you be generous enough to let us see a bit of your creativity upon the Silver Screen? I would be thrilled and honored to watch any one of your 700/800 films.
Ciao
Hello javajunki70,
Let me tell you a little bit about my friend Gio Shanger (a.k.a. "gshanger")...
Gio made the Paranoia: 1.0 making-of mockumentary, which is called 1.5: Searching for Waterfall/Fjord at 5 AM in Bucharest. You can find it on the Paranoia: 1.0 North American DVD (as well as on the German DVD). Despite what some reviewers have written, Gio's mock-doc is basically a work of fiction -- the co-directors were on set at all times.
"The Shanger" (as his friends affectionately know him) is an underground, experimental filmmaker, amongst other things. He also works in production in the regular, "commercial" film industry. You won't find many of Gio's films at your local multiplex or in your local video store. Some of his films have screened at film festivals, but often he just screens them himself at various places and venues in Toronto, Canada.
Gio is an independent filmmaker, in the purest sense of the word. He writes, finances, shoots, and edits his films himself. While I'm not sure how many films he has made, I know that he has made numerous short films and documentaries, as I have seen some of them.
As well as being an innovative artist, Gio is also one of the most kind-hearted and generous persons I have ever met. Most of the crap that is being written about Gio on these boards does not reflect the man at all, in my informed opinion.
Anyway, I hope that clears things up for you and everyone else. :-)
Cheers,
Mote99
Thanx for that MOTE...
So true, and I do take "dee" criticism in stride.... WOW, how can an unkwon filmmaker be so contriversial!
Anyway, shang shang shangers,
Gio. Shanger
You're welcome, Shanger.
Cheers,
Mote99
No really mote - Thank You!!!
(((#26)))
(((Bump-a-dee-Bump!!!))))
shareThanks a lot too, I was seriously interested in gshanger's story, since he alluded to being well connected to the makers of this film. Also, the affectations he has taken on to create a persona on this message board. I can't help but wonder whether this reflects his true online personality, or merely a created persona.
shareAnd finally, though I'm sure he cares not, being a 'true' independent film maker (screw what the mass of sheep want, right Shanger??), using 'dee' in place of 'the' consistently is quite distracting and detracts from the value of his input. That is to say, people are unable or unwilling to glean value from his posts *because* he insists on replacing 'the' with 'dee' (couldn't you use 'duh' sometimes, please? when I say the [rhymes with dee] it means I am putting emphasis on THE specific thing I am taking about, rather than thuh general class of things).
shareThis is a reprint we, Bruce's Angels, posted on the thread On the search for Waterfall/Fjord, The Making of 1.5 by Mr. Shanger. As a Bruce Payne fan site, we gleaned a lot of value from this. It gave us a wonderful behind the scenes interview of Mr. Bruce Payne that we were able to capture and put on our fan site and it gave us a lot more valuable input into the making of this fine film and for this Mr. Shanger, we once again thank you!
"I been searchin', searchin'..." - On the search for Waterfall/Fjord. The Making of 1.5 gave us a unique insight into the making of the film. It gave us viewers a chance to glimpse the rarely seen--all that goes on behind the scenes and the collaboration that brings the film to the screen. It gave us a first hand look at just how many people, how much hard work and challenges go into the making of a film.
Watching the film, we see the actors/actresses in character. But the Making of 1.5 also gave us viewers a chance to see the actors/actresses out of character, how they prepare themselves to get into the character they play; to see a different side we normally don't see--through hijinks and interviews.
From our point of view (a Bruce Payne fan site), it gave us and other fans a wonderful opportunity to see Mr. Payne in a behind-the-scenes interview about the film. We were thrilled to be able to capture this interview and put it on our One Point O page at Bruce's Angels. http://www.brucesangels.com/paranoia.html
Thank you for all the hard work that went into bringing us such a unique film. "Are you infected?" "You wanna see something fresh?" "There are changes happening, man"!
Sorry, the "dee" and the grammar IS difficult to make out. I still can't figure out why everyone was ignoring the main character at the end, even the lady who just had sex w/ him. Was it just an upgrade hallucination? The landlord guy is Howard right; didn't he have a bunch of meat in his fridge... doesn't that mean that he was also infected like his buddy the milk-lover? If so, maybe he's taking brains because of his affliction or to give it to his robot? But he did this to other people? Arrrrr & *sigh* Still so many questions. Better get the DVD w/ extras & watch it again. This movie needed another 10 minutes, atleast, to clarify. Otherwise it was fine. It was really slow and redundant but I really liked the courier guy. I started watching near nap time and I kept myself awake for the ending... tough, but worth it I guess.
shareNever post again. Attempt to properly type or do not.
shareI think this is a spot-on explanation. Remember when Simon bought milk for the first time in the movie after receiving the first package? He had a newspaper? Look closely and you'll see one of the headlines says "Murder victims brain removed." Could this have been Howard's work??
Also, if Nile is a bad guy, then why did he tell Simon he was infected? Why bother tipping Simon off in the first place? He could have given him the 1.1.5 upgrade without his ever knowing (for that matter FARM could have as well). Niles' motives remain shrouded in mystery...