MovieChat Forums > The Art of Getting By (2011) Discussion > The ending pissed me off to no end...

The ending pissed me off to no end...

posted 12 years ago by justintruax
28 replies | jump to latest

**SPOILERS**

If this kid truly believed in the fact that nothing we do matters in life (which is why I watched it) then he would have accepted the expulsion. At the beginning of the movie, he went on a little rant about how 120 million die every year and how everything else was an illusion. If he knew this, then why did he cave and do all that years worth homework?

Was it for his mom? Because she was going through a tough time and he wanted to make her proud? Well, again... Nothing matters, even making your mom proud of you when she is on the verge of losing her place. So why not stick with your original theory and just say **** the homework and go do what you want!? Why did he suddenly change and become a robot like the rest of the kids?

Such a disappointment.

_______________________________________________________________

"I believe I deserve some recognition from this board."
"What?"
"Yes."

[–] spacemansneontiger 12 years ago

I think the moment his mom said that they had to sell the apartment, he finally got his motivation and started putting the effort into his academic work. Obviously he might not have cared a lot for his stepfather, but he wanted to do right by his mother. I guess he realized that without a diploma, it would be near impossible for him to find much success in life otherwise. That's why he started getting his act together. IMHO.

[–] TheHypnotron 12 years ago

I think in the beginning of the movie his loneliness and having not yet experienced falling in love made him see only the negative. All that changes when he forms a relationship with Sally. He finally finds some things in life that make living worth your best effort.

[–] justintruax 12 years ago

I would like to see how this turned out in the real world.

__________________________________________________________

"I believe I deserve some recognition from this board."
"What?"
"Yes."

[–] trigun_78 11 years ago

Sally would have gone with Nick and that would be that.

[–] filmfancy 12 years ago

I think in the beginning of the movie his loneliness and having not yet experienced falling in love made him see only the negative. All that changes when he forms a relationship with Sally. He finally finds some things in life that make living worth your best effort.

I think Sally was his main motivator for starting to take things seriously, which kind of makes sense for a teenager. He didn't seem to care about his parent's problems all that much.

What I thought was cliched was his final art project. His art teacher told him that he expected to be amazed by his final work. I don't think his final project was that amazing or deep; it was just a portrait of a girl, granted the girl he loved, but still not earth-shattering. For the teacher to react the way he did was a bit over-the-top.

"And all the pieces matter"

[–] hka-3 11 years ago

What I thought was cliched was his final art project. His art teacher told him that he expected to be amazed by his final work. I don't think his final project was that amazing or deep; it was just a portrait of a girl, granted the girl he loved, but still not earth-shattering. For the teacher to react the way he did was a bit over-the-top.

The most important factor in the assignment was for him to find "something he never had the courage to say before." We knew that he had never painted before, so the second he put his first brush stroke onto canvas, he had already done exactly what the teacher asked of him.

Mele Kalikimaka

[–] netrek 12 years ago

Because he actually matured and realized there are things worth working and fighting for in life. The stupid existentialists and their empty "life is meaningless" philosophy no doubt was a convenient crutch for his obvious depression and feeling of otherness and isolation. Life does matter.

><> <><

[–] Toke-11 12 years ago

I think you're confusing existentialism with nihilism... Existentialism is pretty much all about bringing meaning to your life. You might say that George evolves from being a nihilist to an existentialist.

[–] Xcalat3 12 years ago

Nothing weird about it. he realized that his problems are nothing in the grand scheme of things and he want to help his mom or at least make her proud.

Plus I think he somehow had hope he could finally be with Sally (which turned out to be true).

When there's no more room in hell, The dead will walk the earth...

[–] HeavyHeartToCarry 12 years ago

Well, if nothing matters, then him doing that stuff and graduating shouldn't matter either. Therefore, why not?

"A true leader does what is right, no matter what others think." - Dumbledore

[–] 12 years ago

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[–] Xcalat3 12 years ago

Well, if nothing matters, then him doing that stuff and graduating shouldn't matter either. Therefore, why not?

exactly.

When there's no more room in hell, The dead will walk the earth...

[–] AnotherCineFan 12 years ago

That's a little confusing. If you watched it because you wanted to see a story about someone who didn't care, that means you cared enough to watch the story, so you shouldn't be upset if ultimately, it suggests there should be something to care about.

If you truly wanted to revel in something about not caring, and about which you did not care, you should not have watched the film.

[–] ACDCnLedZeppelin 12 years ago

He did not cave. That was his view on life then, but it changed. I think if he never met Sally that is exactly what would have happened, his view of the world would have still been the same. Would have just his mom being in debt real bad and having to sell the apartment have been enough? Maybe and maybe not.

[–] 12 years ago

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[–] armoreska 12 years ago

Totally feel the same way
Still liked it, 5.5/10, but it slid way off the expected 8/10

Props on the technique, boy's got ability and all that, but what's so awesome about painting a woman? That's like the most cliche thing imaginable argh!