Ending of the book/film
Sorry if this has been asked before on this board, but i couldnt see it when i looked through the topics, but what are the differences between the film's climax and the novel's ending?
Thanks
I've just finished the book and can tell you the differences. Hopefully you will read this since it has been some time since this thread started.
SPOILER WARNING to those who plan on reading the novel or watching the movie.
The book pretty much picks up where the ending of the movie left off and shows what happens after Meadows arrives at the jail. Buddusky and Mule decide to go AWOL because they feel so bad for taking Meadows to prison. They decide to just get drunk and eat all day and never return back to the Navy. Buddusky wins some money in a dart game(which happens in the movie, but that scene is in the middle and Meadows is still with them, in the book it's after Meadows arrives at the prison). He wins some money and (just like in the movie) splits the money with Mule and Meadows(he mails Meadows share to him). Buddusky and Mule try to sell the guns they have but can't, because the pawn shops refuse to purchase government property. So then Buddusky and Mule drop their guns into a mailbox. Once the guns are found and after some time two guys on Shore Patrol have to find them and arrest them. Once they arrest them both, Buddusky and Mule try to beat up the two Shore Patrol guys and make a run for it. Instead what happens is Buddusky gets hit over the head and dies.
If you would like to know other differences between the movie and the book I'd be glad to tell you.
"Well if it isn't fat stinking billy goat Billy Boy in poison!"
Is the bar scene in the book at all?
shareIf by the bar scene you mean the part where Buddusky, Meadows, and Mule go to the bar and the bartender refuses to sell Meadows a drink and Buddusky pulls out a gun, then yes it is in there. In fact, it's pretty much written in the book like it's acted out in the movie.
"Well if it isn't fat stinking billy goat Billy Boy in poison!"
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Just saw the film last night on S4C (Welsh Channel 4). Was great, very funny.
Is the book as funny?
The books almost sounds like it could be a continuation of the movie.
Thanks for the reply (its been a while since i checked back to this board, so only just seen this thread again), i really enjoyed the film an i'm glad of the extra info from the books ending. I'm a bit gutted Buddusky dies though! Kinda glad that was omitted from the movie! Cheers for the feedback, might check out the book now.
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I wish the movie's ending was a little stronger.
After spending all that time with Meadows, the film's conclusion comes up a little rushed and unresolved for me. A movie like this shouldn't have ended like "a day at the office".
Did SM1 Buddusky get anything out of this experience? Mule? Or what about Meadows? He's left with the next six to eight years to ponder his last few days of freedom. Was everything shared in vain? Why did SM1 care in the first place if Meadows gets to enjoy brew and experience a woman? Why?
Overall, I liked the movie. But I couldn't help feel like the ending came up short.
Anyone else feel like this?
~ MC2
"The reservist formerly known as JO2"
I loved the ending. I thought it was very true to life.
The way the Marines just snatch Meadows and wisk him away so fast before Buddusky or Mule can even say goodbye to him, it's just so heartbreaking. And you can tell it really hurt them. They just spent so much time with that kid, and they helped him come out of his shell and live a little, and the second they get to the prison he's taken away without so much as a parting glance.
I would have hated it if they would have gone with the Hollywood ending, where Buddusky would say "Can we have a minute alone with the kid?" and they had some tear-jerker/triumph of the human spirit long scripted goodbye.
Instead, they build it all up so the whole movie is leading up to that scene in the prison and they just rip the rug out from under you.
They don't make endings like that, or movies like that anymore.
That's why the 1970's were so great.
Good point about the ending being true to life. It was. I didn't expect a tear-jerker or anything like that. For me, the ending seemed a little abrupt. That's all.
Yes, the seventies were a good time for movies. Many of my favorites are from this decade . . .
Best Wishes,
~ MC2
"The reservist formerly known as JO2"
I agree that the ending was abrupt and did not make much sense. Why had the orders not been endorsed? And why did Michael Moriarty just drop the matter rather than involving the XO?
shareI don't think there's any great mystery here. The orders hadn't been endorsed because somebody screwed up, and Moriarity backed down because he knew that his XO would think he was being a pissy little bitch and probably would have reprimanded him for bothering him and busting the sailors' balls.
sharevery well said "triumph of the human spirit" hahaha. that is exactly how they would do it today too.
shareCompletely agree.
shareIt sounds like Towne did a great job fixing a terrible book.
shareAre you kidding? The book IS superior to the movie -- read it before saying something so ridiculous. Books and movies are two different things and I've yet to see a film that delivers what the book created. It's the same here. Book is meditation on what happens to someone when they do something they HAVE to do (ordered to...) and it doesn't correspond with their personal desires. That's life in a nutshell for many, many people. It often destroys them, makes them "mad" (as in crazy), and so it did in the book.
shareThe book is MUCH better than the movie. A lot of Ponicsan's funniest foul-mouthed lines of dialogue are dumbed-down by Towne to "*Beep* you, mother*beep*er!" and the like.
Another point to ponder: The movie's ending is SO abrupt, that there is no longer any reason to call it THE LAST DETAIL. As near as we can tell, Mule and Buddusky are both returning to their posts, and will get several more details after this one.
I think the movie is a missed opportunity, especially when you consider the perfect casting of the lead characters.
Actually, I like the movie better, mostly due to Jack Nicholson.
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