MovieChat Forums > Body Heat (1981) Discussion > Question about the boathouse

Question about the boathouse

posted 8 years ago by flicky-3
3 replies | jump to latest

If Oscar thinks that Ned is behind everything how could he (Oscar) explain the motive for the boathouse being rigged to blow?

It makes sense from Matty's point of view if she's trying to kill Ned (which we the audience understand) but why on earth would Ned do that?

Oscar has to believe that Ned is too dumb to have gone to such great lengths to plan something this elaborate right? He has to have some doubts as to Neds guilt esp regarding the boathouse explosion.

[–] ExTechOp (2770) 7 years ago

I think Oscar DOES believe Ned is too dumb to have gone to such lengths ... but the evidence links Ned to Edmund's murder, regardless of the boathouse. And Ned is, in fact, guilty of that murder.

The boathouse shows, at worst, that Matty was trying to blow up Ned and failed. It doesn't exonerate Ned; it just proves Ned and Matty were both guilty. And it proves Matty is dead. No need to look any further.

[–] ProfessorPlum (69) 3 years ago

Look at it from a different angle - if Matty had rigged the boathouse to blow, why would she open the door and kill herself? I corpse found in the fire implicates no one except for Ned. And by implication, linking her death with Edmund's.

[–] ExTechOp (2770) 3 years ago

dang that’s so obvious yet in 40 years it never occurred to me

It’s the same kind of bomb, so OF COURSE it’ll look like Ned killed Matty

It happened right after Matty got the money and moved it … so if a jury believes Ned lknows how to access it, they’d definitely believe he killed Matty with the same damn bomb

Good catch!

Oh well, at least Heather gets the house (with Mattty “dead,” her mom’s the next of kin)