Many "normal" (not even on legal or illegal drugs) people daydream\hallucinate seeing those around them--strangers, colleagues, friends & family--appearing harmed, whether from insect bites, vehicle run-overs, gunshots, hardware to the head, or some other sort of mayhem on a daily basis. (Others more often "see" calamities on a macro scale: exploding buildings, UFOs, crashing planes, etc.) With "The Man" aka Stan presumably on serious meds during his 15 years of institutionalization, he probably had dozens of throat-slitting visions during the time frame of the movie which were edited out or not filmed at all for the sake of concise story-telling. Visions involving Loretta and the exhibitionist topless lady in the shower (the open window conceals her below her ribcage) both were highly relevant to the plot. As for the old crone in the junk yard, one must assume the filmmakers screwed up with her: 60ish Stanley (played by Bix Barnaba) appears in an alternate ending, watching 30-year-old Stan reunite with mom Cheryl through the living room window. The credits list this Stanley as "old hobo." Filling in the blanks, one can guess--Canadian justice being what it is--that serial killer Bob would be on the streets well before this alternate ending occurs, driving the "reformed" Cheryl of 30-year-old Stan vintage back to booze till SHE lost the house and became a street person, where future paroled Bob tracked her down at the junkyard's communal campground and slit her throat, leaving the friendless Stan in permanent hobohood, with only other Stanleys for company. Not understanding all of this, DARKROOM's harried film editor forgot to cut this junkyard set up scene when the current ending erased 60-year-old Stan from the movie.
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