Does Ige really return?
Does the woman that take care of the children really return? I think not.
When Uxbal leaves the bathroom she's hanging on the ceiling, which usually means that the person is dead?
It seems the director said she returned.
However her NOT returning would make the movie more consistent. It fits much better with the overall theme.
When I watched this, it was obvious to me that it was him on the ceiling. I just checked again in case I was wrong but I don't see how anyone could think it isn't him. It was to mark that his life was ending.
As for Ige coming back, you have to look at Uxbal's role in the film and his characters arc. The film was about achieving serenity before death in a challenging world and there is nothing to suggest any ambiguity. Admittedly it could have been done better but I had no doubt that she returned at the end.
The anecdote by the corrupt cop about the tiger was simply a counterpoint to Uxbal's journey during the film. The cop wasn't a sympathetic character and part of the beauty of this story is ultimately that despite a hopeless situation in a world filled with flawed and greedy characters, a fundamentally good man found resolution and peace before death. He proved the cop wrong along the way.
If Ige didn't come back, it wouldn't have fitted with the conclusion.
That's how I saw it anyway. Loved the film.
If that is true then the director is only admitting to a pretty poor performance at conveying what he wanted to convey during the important end scenes.
I agree that through his sloppiness he ended up with a much better ending. The ambiguous ending was the best way to close this film.
Why have a happy ending after the gritty hopelessness that went before? Iga may have come back of course but we can't know for sure. If you imagine he received some form of redemption prior to death, then you also got that.