MovieChat Forums > Time After Time (1979) Discussion > As a kid I never understood the ending

As a kid I never understood the ending

posted 9 years ago by snelling
4 replies | jump to latest

But now I think I have it. The key is that Amy and Carol look sort of alike. So the newspaper printed that Amy had been murdered, along with Amy's photo next to the story.

Carol was approaching Amy's flat (being invited for dinner) when Amy was hiding from John (Jack) and he grabbed Carol, maybe from behind, and did not see her face.

But the police show up and get physically sick at the bloody murder crime scene. So when does John (Jack) abduct Amy at all if the crime scene is cordoned off from that point on? At least we have to assume that much.

"'Extremely High Voltage.' Well, I don't need safety gloves, because I'm Homer Sim--" - Frank Grimes

[–] prizm4 9 years ago

The body was so disfigured that the police assume it was Amy. So that's why the newspaper says it's her.
We assume Jack kills Amy's friend, then kidnaps Amy and waits for H.G.

[–] prizm4 9 years ago

Jack gets away with Amy because the police arrive too late.

[–] TVholic 8 years ago

Jack is gone with Amy before the police arrive. He didn't mistake Carol for Amy. He just wanted to kill someone. Keeping Amy alive gave him the chance to extort the key from H.G.

[–] puirt-a-beul 8 years ago

From what we're shown, we can't really tell whether John killed Carol in error, at first assuming she was Amy coming into her apartment (and it's a little bit contrived that even a close friend like Carol would let herself into Amy's apartment without saying anything like, "Amy, are you home?"), or whether he knew it wasn't Amy, but recognised Carol from the bank and knew that she would have recognised him, and decided to give himself a bonus kill anyway (which would echo the real-life Jack the Ripper's night of double-murder).

And of course for the audience there's an anxious moment of not knowing who's arm is lying on the carpet, while the police assume it's Amy because it's in Amy's apartment. Obviously, John drags Amy out of the building between the murder and the police arriving.

You might very well think that. I couldn't possibly comment.