MovieChat Forums > San taam (2007) Discussion > more in-depth analysis of the end *spoil...

more in-depth analysis of the end spoilers

posted 12 years ago by waldomarek
3 replies | jump to latest

making a separate thread for this more in-depth analysis of the ending.

i think the gun switching at the end was really confusing for a lot of people, this is what i got, hope it's correct:

chi-wai with wong's (his partner's) gun
indian with chi-wai's gun
mad detective with ho's gun
ho with gigi's gun

1. chi-wai shoots the indian multiple times
2. ho (in fear and in doubt?) shoots mad detective
3. chi-wai goes up to the indian and then shoots ho once
4. mad detective crawls up and shoots chi-wai for killing the indian and shooting at ho
5. chi-wai shoots back at mad detective hitting him a few times, only to run out of ammo shortly afterwards
6. mad detective shoots chi-wai through the head

if judging the scene by the bullets fired only (keeping the rightful owners in mind), we will have the following story (we can neglect the fact that chi-wai and the indian's gun were switched up, because the police force does not know this, they will assume the registration code of the guns are correct and chi-wai was indeed using his own gun and not that of his partner's and vice versa):

1. chi-wai shoots the indian multiple times
2. gigi shoots mad detective
3. chi-wai shoots ho once
4. ho shoots back at chi-wai
5. chi-wai shoots mad detective (this could've happened before everything)
6. ho shoots chi-wai through the head

so in short: chi-wai is the bad guy, he killed the indian, wanted to kill the mad detective (and succeeds) and ho as well. gigi (for whatever reason) shot the mad detective. ho managed to kill chi-wai at the end. this story, to me, seemed like a good enough story to tell the police force. however, ho still decided to wipe off the prints and switch guns to make another story.

1. ho first put back gigi's gun and then reclaimed his own gun from the mad detective
2. the indian's gun he puts in the mad detective's hand
3. chi-wai's gun he puts in the indian's hand
4. he changes his mind and puts chi-wai's gun from the indian's hand into the mad detective's hand
5. the indian's gun which was in the mad detective's hand he put into chi-wai's
6. the indian's gun is put back into his own hand after all the switching

end result: only change was chi-wai's gun going to the mad detective's hand. chi-wai had no gun in his hand at the end and the indian had his own gun.

the only problem is that, judging on the bullets fired, chi-wai's gun was used to shoot the indian which was possible, ho, which was also possible but also on the mad detective. however, the mad detective was now carrying chi-wai's gun, so the mad detective shot himself from a distance?

ho pretty much screwed up the story himself. the original story (where he would just reclaim his own gun) was fine but i guess the calculated part in his mind felt there was a need to change the story. we also don't know by the time the screen goes black, the guns were left unmoved or not.

hope i got the ending right, feel free to correct me and/or discuss :)

[–] ziplague 11 years ago

You got it right, but, the way i see it, ho is going to save his own a** in anyway possible.
As for Gigi shooting the mad one, she needs a reason, so my guess she's gonna get a bullet or two from the detective's gun when she comes to the scene. Now that's the simplest one i came up with.
The best scenario for Ho would be for Gigi to die at the crime scene by chi-wai's gun.
That way there are no loose ends. Ho comes to the scene of the crime and finishes Chi-way with his own gun for killing his girl, basically he's a hero now and nobody can know why she shot the detective.

If she lives, then there will be an inquiry and they will lose their job.

The reason i feel strongly about Ho killing the girl is because i see it as the transformation theme of the movie. Ho transforms into Chi-wai (becomes corrupted) same way as Chi got corrupted. And there was a moment in the movie when Chi kills a person for no other reason than to simply complicate the story and make it better for himself. (the little scared boy wasn't alone in the end, a sneaky woman in black is guiding him, and looks pretty much the same as the one that guided Chi.)

I watched this movie 2 times a year :) my favorite scene is the restaurant scene, when Mad orders meal after meal and feasts :D makes me hungry every time.

[–] waldomarek 11 years ago

nice thinking there, could very well be true that he'd sacrifice his girlfriend, be it in fear or out of selfishness, to back up his story.

didn't look at it that way, thx for the post :)

[–] spookyrat1 9 years ago

The best scenario for Ho would be for Gigi to die at the crime scene by chi-wai's gun.

It could occur. I like the ambiguity evident in the ending. As the camera draws back we see Ho going about his business exchanging and wiping guns. Then when we think he's finished just before the credits roll, we see him making another change, indicating that he may well not have finalized his plans and further twists may occur.🐭

more in-depth analysis of the end *spoilers*

more in-depth analysis of the end spoilers