MovieChat Forums > Born to Be Blue (2016) Discussion > The Ending - A huge WTF???

The Ending - A huge WTF???

posted 8 years ago by at7000
7 replies | jump to latest

What the hell happened people??? Chet's woman flew all the way out to Birdland from LA to make the show, she watched him play the first tune, and then gave Chet's manager a piece of jewelry and stormed the hell out of there and presumably also Chet's life altogether.

Could she tell Chet was high on smack? And not the methadone like he was supposed to be taking? How the hell could she tell all that? Chet's performance was spot on, even Miles was clapping.

For sure it is the strangest, most inexplicable scene in the film. Woman's intuition? A sixth sense? or a "Chet was playing so damn well that he must be on smack again?"

[–] imdb-16754 8 years ago

"Chet was playing so damn well that he must be on smack again?"

This--but with a dash of tragedy, romance, and poetry if you wish to see it that way.

[–] at7000 8 years ago

Interesting perspective. I have been married twice and yes, both woman did have a "sixth sense" and probably could tell the same about me if I were in that situation.

I am not so sure how much difference in stage and playing behavior would result from methadone vs heroin. The former kills the craving effect without the high I think, and that is the point of it.

I was also thinking, what if Sarah had gone into Chet's dressing room? (Off screen of course) and saw his rig? I think that is what they call it, your needles, tourniquet, spoon, etc. My god that is a sick lifestyle.

[–] Locke_John 8 years ago

She told him early in the film she would know he was using again if he touched his face in a certain way, which he did a couple of times during the performance.

[–] at7000 8 years ago

Wow, great catch. I vaguely remember it now. He had a type of "tic" ... Always scratching at his face when he was on the smack.

[–] imdb-16754 8 years ago

Prosaic points of view, yet wasn't this movie was anything but?

[–] mdunford74 8 years ago

There's a scene earlier in the movie, Jane comes home and finds Chet passed out on the floor covered in blood with a needle in his arm
after she cleans him up and they make up, she tells him, she won't be involved with him if he is a junkie
she tells him, if she sees him scratching his face like that again, she'll know he's not clean

when he's singing at the end, he looks at her and rubs (scratches) his hands across his face, telling her, im not clean, this is who i am and she leaves

[–] frogca 7 years ago

To me it was the way that he leaned back and looked a little dazed after that first song, like a noodle about to fall to the floor. Just way more relaxed that he would be without substances.

For me the WTF was why didn't he take the methadone instead, and the answer is, as he said, the methadone was like a condom (his words) and he wanted to get inside every note in the music with slow and wide time. And that was more important to him than her.

A bit exaggerated, perhaps that she knew this instantly, but it beats dragging out the drama, I suppose.

Edit: Clearly I missed the scratching the face thing.