What was with the Ending?
I haven't seen this movie in a very long time, why did Charlie commit suicide?
sharehe didnt. He believed the helicopter was a god, or some kind of being that takes people to heaven/hell. He wanted to see his family, and the only way he believed was to bo with the helicopter. When he let go at the end, he thought he was going to heaven.
shareThat helicopter sure got altitude fast. Charlie hung on for about 10 seconds then fell for at least a minute before the credits rolled.
shareOr maybe you don't realize that he was completing his dream walk by being carried on his way to heaven by Bita/Saika and ultimately ascended to "heaven" to be with his family. Bita was said to be the "trickster" who had seemingly been playing with him until he'd finally grabbed hold of Bita's "leg" and held fast until he could continue on his own, at which time he let go.
Did you not think it unusual the way he fell or flew from a great height ABOVE the clouds? He was higher than the altitude of the helicopter, so he was ascending NOT descending. So the only question is whether he ascended spiritually or physically, as we didn't see him fall to Earth. The film seems to suggest that his spiritual beliefs transcended this world and delivered him to another. Now again, was that in a physical sense or a spiritual one? And did he fall to Earth and die in his dream of flying to heaven?
Either way, he completed his dream walk, and with Bita's assistance, travelled to heaven and rejoined his family and his people.
So his journey was finished and Nothing was wrong with the ending, or more importantly HIS ending.
"..Combined with a spirit of bold curiosity for the adventure ahead!"
good point, 100% agree with you
shareWell, andy, I have to say, I enjoyed your post. Nice to see that some people do know what they are watching.
meg.
[deleted]
yeah, or he passed out. or his hands froze. Or they just didnt know how else to end this depressing ass movie with a glimmer of happiness. He didnt ascend into the clouds, he let go of the helicopter. It was poorly done. Why in the hell would the pilot hover over him to let him grab on, then take the *beep* off into the clouds like that. If he knew he was hanging on the plane he was an *beep* to murder him like that. If he didnt, why in the hell would he hover directly over someone he didnt know was there, then take back off to such a high altitude. Which helicopters dont go up above clouds anyway. why would he hold out his hand to somebody hanging onto the landing gear of an inflight aircraft? Like he was gonna get up walkover and crawl across the pilots lap. If that was when the pilot realized, "hey, theres somebody hanging onto the helicopter!" then why didnt he drop altitude to try and negate the risk of him falling to his death? Made little sense except in a figurative way. *beep* end to a great movie.
shareIf that was when the pilot realized, "hey, theres somebody hanging onto the helicopter!" then why didnt he drop altitude to try and negate the risk of him falling to his death?
That's what bothered me when I watched it. He seemed to want to help him by offering to grab him, yet he also kept taking him up higher and higher.
Take Care
(another Michael Ansara fan) share
Great post. Though I seriously don't think the movie was telling us his spirit was trapped in his frozen body for millennia and had to be thawed out to complete his quest by hanging on to a helicopter, then letting go so he could die and go to heaven. It's nice for him that he died feeling that he had done his job and felt like he was flying, but I think the message of the movie was much more cynical, they just didn't want to have a downer ending so they let it end with the flying shot, not with Shephard getting arrested and losing his career, and Charlie's body getting dissected and his body parts being shipped to research facilities all over the world. It's all ok, 'cause he flew to heaven.
Was anyone else hoping Charlie would go live with the Inuit tribe in the end? That was the only solution I could think of.
Great interpretation :) thanks
shareYes, I, too, must say very well put. Awesome movie. I just watched it for the first time, and enjoyed it quite a bit.
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Life is full of misery, loneliness, and suffering - and it's all over much too soon.