SPOILER AHEAD!
If the ending was meant to depict that the protagonist (John) died because he couldn't climb out of the pit he dug, IT'S RIDICULOUS.
1) The shovel was within reach. He could use it to form a kind of dirt ramp.
2) Even without the shovel, he could use his left (uninjured) hand to pull dirt away from the side of the pit, forming a ramp.
3) He could attempt to climb up on the girl's body.
[deleted]
Guy - the point was that he was devoid of energy. Through blood loss and physical fatigue he had become unable to survive. Like a wounded deer chased through the woods.
shareCan one bleed out from losing a finger or two?
shareI was thinking sepsis, blood infection. It is plausible that bacteria entered the blood system and it can go fast. If he's worn out, stressed and losing blood it may definitely increase the risk of being a faster process.
And sepsis would definitely put him in that state and it explains why it looked like he had an infection.
The ending is not ridiculous, but actually plausible, when you make the sepsis argument.
The knife was poisoned of course!
shareSepsis. In a couple hours. Rrrright, I take it you've never had a cut your whole life doc...
shareI cut my finger in 2007 as a custodial third shift cast member at the Coral Reef restaurant at EPCOT Center, Disney World; the wine glass went through my glove and cut my finger hitting an artery. At first I thought it was nothing but my finger wouldn't stop bleeding; there was an accident blocking the way for the paramedics to get to me (yes, for a cut finger) and after 30 minutes of nonstop bleeding (with it wrapped and going through the wrapping) I felt faint. I'm a big guy. 6'4", 230 pounds, and I felt faint. By the time they got me to the hospital, I actually passed out; that was about 45 minutes. I had to get stitches on my finger, apparently when I pulled the glass out of my finger a piece broke off and stayed in my finger.
So, from that experience I had: seems plausible to me.
-Nam
I'm on the road less traveled...
im glad your ok
shareEvery finger I believe has arteries in them so it seems possible if it's bleeding long enough and how fast the heart would be pumping the blood out. And he shoveled that hole at the end so he must have been working hard at it.
Here's a chart to show the arteries running from the arm to the finger.
http://www.bartleby.com/107/illus528.html
Having mangled some fingers in a lawn mower accident, I'm not buying his dying from the cut off finger
"A distant ship, smoke on the horizon. You are only coming through in waves."
Yes that was the point. Doesn't mean that the end scene wasn't poorly executed though. And I believe it was, for the reason that - it just wasn't believable enough. Yet had the hole been a little deeper, had we seen a shot showing that John WAS indeed loosing a lot of blood - in my opinion would have strengthened the ending of this enjoyable film.
I'm sorry, I wasn't aware this is the Internet BOOK Database.
SupeRed, you've nailed it spot-on.
I had a little bit of trouble buying the ending as it was, but if they had clarified those two things a bit more, it could have totally worked.
And it would not have been difficult to do: Dig the hole a bit deeper, and a brief shot of blood flowing (or at least dripping fast) from beneath the bandage. However, I give them a break. I'm assuming a lack of budget or time.
In any case, I greatly enjoyed the film as it was. 8 stars from me. 9 stars had those little changes been made.
ur right also i think it means he dug himself a hole from the beginning. so he died in a hole. just my opinion.
sharePreposterous ending ruined an otherwise pretty entertaining movie. None of the proposals in the thread make any sense. I've been cut like that and worse; you'd never lose so much blood that you couldn't climb out of a hole, nor would you have all that trouble manipulating a rifle. And it would take at least a day for an infection to set in, cause sepsis, and result in symptoms like fatigue. I get what they were trying to accomplish; but the execution was a miserable failure.
shareYou're right, it's a metaphor.
shareI couldn't agree more. Dirt ramp. Nuff said.
shareI think it was portraying how screwed he was. Wife officially moved on, guilty of two murders, present at a suicide, unable to use the money. The scene of his ex-wife and child finding the toy-horse was just his imagination.
share[deleted]
The fact that he dies makes it a good ending. But come on, died from a cut off finger?! Ridiculous indeed.
shareYeah, totaly agree with you there. A good ending - poorly executed. I did however like the shot of the deer peering over the 'wall' of the pit where John lay.
I'm sorry, I wasn't aware this is the Internet BOOK Database.
Yes, that was great. These forest imagery is always very symbolic.
This kind of ending seems to work best in theatre. On the stage everything is so in focus that we seem to believe that a small thing has huge impact and makes us wonder about the symbol -- absurdity, frailty of life -- instead of "this is not believable". I recently saw that 7 Psychopats by one of the greatest theatre directors of nowadays, and the movie is just awful. Seems to work in theatre, but not on the big screen.
Completely agree with the OP! What a joke. What is it with these "Hollywood" endings nowadays?
shareI found the ending ambiguous, not definitive. I knew ppl would not like it though but based on the type of film it was it fits. Theres no way he would bleed out from a loped off finger especially since it was bandaged. If he were to die it would not be because he couldnt get out of the grave but rather he didnt want to. It seemed to me his efforts were half-hearted at best and perhaps guilt and shame got the best of him. More likely he would be found once the police show up and start looking for him.
shareAgree, I said 'mmm, ambiguous' when it cut to black. We aren't supposed to know, a classic movie trick to imply an ending when there isn't one. So he froze to death or went to prison for a few years. The end of a movie with not very likable characters, so I don't really care either way.
shareSepsis. It can take only a few hours to kick in, he was pretty worn out and stressed.
A friend of mine got sepsis form a wasp sting on his thumb.
An old dirty knife is definitely a good source of bacteria that could've entered his blood stream; sepsis. It can take only but a few hours to kick in, which I find plausible due to his acute stress, the immune system may have been slightly weakened as well, which would increase the odds of sepsis even more.
What you are describing is septic shock. A condition in which bacteria invade the blood stream and reproduce. Certain factors given off by the bacteria cause vaso-dilation. Eventually your blood pressure drops so low that you die of oxygen deprivation.
Heres the thing. It takes TIME for the bacteria to reach the numbers required to cause septic shock, and no, its not just a few hours.
What I'm describing is the first type, which is called sepsis. There are three types: sepsis, severe sepsis and septic chock. I am describing the very first type, and yes it can take only but a few hours before the symptoms of sepsis starts appearing because of the infection. It usually takes longer, like a few days, but the thing is that this ending was not implausible.
shareWait, who said he died? Ending did not unambiguously showed that he died. He closed eyes so we can be certain that he is dead? Now THIS is ridicolous.
Maybe he just wanted to rest, gather strength and reflect on his life? That's how i understood the ending. But maybe it's just me...
But maybe it's just me..
ok if not a ridiculous ending, then a major let down, I mean is that it?
The tension built up to....nothing much. Meh.
[deleted]
I also disliked the ending. When I noticed how much blood he was losing, it made me think of what I would have done in his place. I would have taken a piece of metal, put it in a fire and then cauterize my finger with it. This guy was a backwoods hunter. I would of thought he could figured it out.
shareyou all looking it the wrong why. he died cause he wanted to.in the end, after the fall he gave up. it was... well, suicide in a way. the dear in the end makes it poetic justice since he died liked an injured animal. the guilt killed him, not sepsis.
shareMaybe, I was trying to convey probable cause.
shareI am going with the sepsis theory, not from his chopped off fingers, but because of the scratch he got at the beginning of the film. When he was chasing the deer and walked into the barbed wire.
I think the film makers deliberately showed this scene at the start. As the film progresses people comment that he is rambling on about nonsense, and acting weird, as someone with severe sepsis would.
So it was a combination of fatigue, sepsis, blood loss, and a loss of caring whether he lived or died.
Another good point.
shareWhen was he rambling nonsense?
share