Most problematic ending for a movie since Alien 3 (which I'm counting as the epilogue to Aliens--despite fan protestations (my own included), Alien 3 still remains part of the canon). Thomas Jane deserves better. I like irony as much as the next guy, but that was just overkill. I was willing to forgive the implausible behavior of some of the characters, but the ending just...*sigh* If you've no plans to see the movie then by all means: (inviso-text spoiler below!!!)
So having escaped from the grocery store which had become like a miniature Jonestown, our hero and four other escapees including his young son make their getaway in his Landcruiser. They drive as far as the gas in the tank will take them, only to find the mist extends seemingly forever. The SUV runs out of gas and the hero decides they should all just commit suicide. They all agree and he takes a revolver and shoots them, including his 8-year old son. He only has four bullets so he decides to step out into the mist and have the monsters kill him. He gets out of the car and beckons them to come end his misery, except they don't, because the cavalry arrives literally in the form of the military and dissipates the mist and exterminates the creatures. This happens literally seconds after he gets out of the car. Thomas Jane sees the army and screams in so much existential agony. Boo!
Too clever by half, Mr. Darabont.
2 comments:
I was spoiled on the ending and liked the idea immensely, not only for overcoming the infernal taboo on child killing (bane of my existence!!), but it seems like there's a timing issue that interferes with the dark punchline? Or the grimness doesn't follow from what has come before?
It wasn't just the timing. The ending just felt...malicious. I have no problem with killing children. (I'd love to one day run for president and have the preceding statement get thrown in my face by Tim Russert.) In fact, (to spoil TWO films) The Host has a child character die and I had no qualms about it.
In The Mist, it feels like Darabont trying to be shocking. I understand how satisfying an ironic ending can be. I remember one classic Twilight Zone where this guy wanted nothing more to spend his remaining years alone surrounded by books. He gets his wish, but before he can read one book, he breaks his reading glasses. Awesome. In The Mist though, you don't want to see these characters get any kind of comeuppance or suffer some ironic fate dealt cruelty. These characters deserve a worthy resolution. That's why I brought up Alien 3. In the opening minutes, the geniuses behind that render moot everything Ripley fought for in the previous film. It makes it almost impossible to watch the rest of the film, because you're sitting there thinking, "Wow, so all that just so the kid can die before the movie even starts? Eff you, Fincher!" With The Mist, the characters endure all this and then blam! The audience is given this morbid ending that just doesn't feel right at all to me.
I would have been interested to see what John Carpenter might have done with this movie. The Thing has one of the all-time great movie endings. It's dour, yet undeniably satisfying.
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