Was anyone else shocked at how happy everything suddenly was when she picked stanley up and the happy music came on and they kiss and it's suddenly fine even though she hated his guts like ten minutes ago and presumably they haven't spoken since. It almost seemed like a parody like in the end of the player. Did i miss something or was that just something the studio probably demanded?
shareIf the company made Cimino tack this happy ending on, he didn't allude to this in the DVD's audio commentary. The only thing the company's execs made him compromise was the final line of the film. White says something like it's something special when you fall in love with your enemy, or something like that. Instead, the last line is "You're really cracked, you know that."
As for the reporter doing a 180 on White, all I can offer is that this is the movies, and people like Cimino who're visually astute yet dramatically simplistic. The film is grandly entertaining, but I can also acknowledge that the screenplay is really bad in places.
It should have ended with Lone's suicide scene.
share[deleted]
I wondering how Stanley will help Tracy get on with her life even though rape victims never completely recover from what happen to them? Both of them will probably have to move to a new residency since they were victims of crimes at their old place.
sharemichael gambon is not dead. i do not understand your signature.
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I see your point. Year of the Dragon is a very sad movie (as is all Michael Cimino films) and a positive ending is a nice touch. In my opinion though, it should have ended with Stanley killing Joey in cold-blood and then getting arrested for it. In a sense, both kings (cop and crime boss) loses with no winner. The war each man brought on led to death on both sides, and it is only poetic for both to lose.
shareIf you think that good cops should lose, we might as well had let the Lone Ranger go to prison for trying to bring justice to the Old West because there was no really honest and effective law enforcement force (apart from the Texas Rangers) in the American West where in the Canadian West, you had the Northwest Mounted Police being an impartial, honest, and efficient police force despite the low pay, long, brutal hours, and incredible horrible living and working conditions that they had to endured.
You might as well arrest Officers Riggs and Murtaugh for wiping out the criminals in the Lethal Weapon movie series or had them kill off because they brought near death to the Murtaugh's family in Lethal Weapons 1, 2. and 4 and the Murtaugh's team of cops were almost wipe out in Lethal Weapon 2 because of Murtaugh and Riggs instead of blaming the criminals for committing the murders and/or attempt murders.
You might also send Rooster J. Cogburn to prison because he violated Judge Parker's order to bring in the criminals to Judge Parker's court in the movie Rooster Cogburn and the Lady. Rooster might as well go to prison being a mass murderer because Judge Parker told Rooster in the same movie, that anyone killing 64 people in 8 years was breaking the law not enforcing the law.
Hey, come on now. Those would be terrible endings for the Lethal Weapons and The Lone Ranger. For those kind of "popcorn loving" movies, a happy ending is required. Year of the Dragon is not a 'popcorn loving' film. It is a sad movie about how two men go head-to-head and face the dire consequences. The traditional Cimino film ends on a bleak note. Just watch The Deer Hunter, Heaven's Gate, and Thunderbolt & Lightfoot. The fact he gave Year of the Dragon a relatively positive ending goes against his style. By the way, your sarcasm is condescending.
shareIf you think my sarcasm is condescending, that is your problem not mine, and I standby what I said about Lethal Weapons, the Lone Ranger, and Rooster Cogburn. When you look at the amount of violence in the Lethal Weapon movie series, I would not consider them pop corn loving movies.
Captain White should not have face the consequences of trying to provide proper, efficient, non-corrupt police services to Chinatown. You should blame his superiors for not standing up to Joey Tai and the politicans who take political money donations from him. It was his superiors' fault for giving Captain White command of the Chinatown area since they knew that he was a good cop and would not take bull from anyone so they were responsible for causing the death of White's wife, getting Tracy Tzu rape, and nearly having Captain White be assassinated by Joey Thai's men.
Whatever dude. You already have made up your mind so there is no point in taking this topic further.
Let's agree to disagree - Boris the Animal
You have already made up your mind as well dude, so I agreed there is no point in talking about it anymore.
Let's agree to disagree - Boris the Animal
Dino De Laurentiis, old world figure that he is, vetoed the demise of Joey Tai that Oliver Stone really wanted, which had Tai being busted for having two wives -- polygamy.
Cimino wanted Tai and White charging each other like warriors on the bridge, which is a visceral and memorable climax, with Tai's funeral echoing Wong's earlier on. I prefer Cimino's ending but it's too bad Stone's wasn't shot as well.
As for White and Tracy's reconciliation at the end -- I think their volatile relationship and the fact that White's own wife is murdered in a relatively short time span made it hard to buy for some viewers. I guess you go with it or don't.
A lot of movies and many TV episodes have strange endings. Look at Lethal Weapon 2, Danny Glover and Mel Gibson's characters went out on their own to take down the South African drug dealers. You wonder how they are going to keep their jobs and not go to prison when they not have only violate police procedures from their own department, but they will also have to answer to the U.S. State Department and to the South African Government. Then again, the South African government is going to have to explain to the American State Department how did the head consulate of the South African Los Angeles Office manage to find a bunch of corrupt government employees, get them assign to his office, and thinking that he and his gang can go around killing American cops without strring up a honest's nest from entire American law enforcement community. Go figure.
In Miami CSI, Horatio Caine and one of his team members went to South America to avenge the killing of one of their former colleagues. In Miami Vice, Sonny Crocker killed the guy who order the hit on him; however, it was Sonny's wife that got murder instead. Lt. Castillo in Miami Vice had killed a criminal despite the fact the guy was going to be protected by rogue members of the U.S. government.
In the movie Romeo Must Die, Jet Li and Aaliyah were walking away as the cops ran up to the house and the cops never bother to stop to question them if they saw and/or heard seen anything that happen at house. That to me is one of the most stupidest, cheesiest endings I have seen in my life. What were the writers and director were thinking of at the time?
Many science fiction movies today have an alien monster, shark, alligator, snake, spider, etc., being killed off; however, it seems that there is another one ready to take over.
I wonder if the director and producer did have an alternative scene where Captain White did a leak on Joey Tai's grave after he was buried? In the movie, Joe Tai told White that he would not last long, and White stated that he would last long enough to p*** on his grave. Joey was shock and scared by that remark. Maybe he had a dream or nightmare in his sleep where he was dead and Captain White was still alive.
In the DVD commentary, Cimino said there was a line by Micky O'Rourke's character where he says, "If you're at war with the enemy long enough, you end up marrying them" that was to go as a voice-over during the final fade-out. Something of a character reveal in that, despite his previous lumping-together of Asiatic peoples as "inscrutibles," (how he saw Vietnamese & Chinese as One Big Adversary To Hate), now he realizes we humans are one big (un)happy family...after all
shareEnding was the worst part. He started a riot at the funeral in a complete rage. Then somehow the riot magically stopped long enough for him to get into a great mood and deliver some cheese ball line.
shareYeah, I agree. I thought Captain White was there to join the funeral, the same way the Tong leader guy dropped by for his girlfriend's funeral.
There are no problems that cannot be solved with a can of brake clean and a lighter
The "girlfriend funeral" was Captain White's wife funeral. She was killed after three of Joey Tai's men tried to kill White at his home. The Chinese guy who attend the funeral was the elderly noodle factory worker who contacted the police after finding two two dead Chinese kids. These kids were the same guys who shot up the resturant where Stanley had a meeting with Tracy Tzu, the reporter. At the factory, White told the elderly Chinese guy, that society need more like him, and the Chinese guy said "BS."
sharei agree, it was cheese. this movie had its moments but parts of it came off like bad TV, like MOTW..... that pandering style of directing common to detective shows of the 60s and 70s....
like one guy said once, causing 'cognitive dissonance' in the viewers mind.
ummmmmmm.... KINDA LIKE THAT JERK PAUL GREENGRASS WITH HIS SHAKY CAM
(ooops. sorry, had to toss that in. ahhhhh. i feel better)
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It just looked inappropriate. How does it look when the cop (who's been disciplined and lost his command and continues to perform questionable police work: handing his gun to Joey to kill himself, arresting a funeral procession! etc,) is kissing the reporter who exposed the underworld, fed with information provided to her by White. It would've raised eyebrows.
sharesonny crocker... the son of betty crocker?
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LMAO yeah i wanted to see that scene, rourke pissing on the grave. and he woulda did it, too. he was such a bad boy back in them days. he was going around town pissing in public for real, so doing that on film would not be a stretch for him LOL
maybe pissing in parking lots was method practice, getting ready for that scene but they never filmed it? LOL
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"As for White and Tracy's reconciliation at the end -- I think their volatile relationship and the fact that White's own wife is murdered in a relatively short time span made it hard to buy for some viewers. I guess you go with it or don't."
Excellent point. One of the things that is difficult for writers, directors and producers and actors have to deal with is their attachment to lines, scenes, even costumes, that were written or made years previously. It's easy to forget that a line written five years ago would represent an enormous, or a very short, amount of time when, in film minutes, it happened eight minutes ago.
Personally, my vision is that Stanley White and Tracy Tzu end up out of the city in a small house with a lush front lawn, sitting on the grass, walking a laughing toddler between the two of them. In reality, he would probably be taken away in handcuffs as detectives hold his service weapon, while paramedics work frantically on an unconscious and heavily-bleeding Tracy Tzu.
quietrobert, You took the words right out of my mouth. Yes! You are so right! For such an incredibly strong film in my opinion, that ending was the cheesiest thing I have ever seen. It did not fit the mood nor the tone of the film. It was slapped on probably as a way to please some overly romantic test audience who demanded it. It was forced and unnatural. The real, true female star in this movie was Connie (Caroline Kava).
sharebut connie had a big nose and moles on her neck. she was far less attractive than the asian chick, even though white was not asian. but, he had spent time there in the war so he had undoubtedly developed a 'taste' for them, hence his decision to switch over to asians in this film. connie was irish like him, but not as attractive as the reporter.
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well, then, i guess it was okay for stanley to be unfaithful to connie since she had a big nose and moles on her neck. i guess irish actresses with big noses and moles on their necks cannot possibly be considered talented or attractive and i guess angry, militant, shrill, hollering asian actresses devoid of big noses and moles on their necks are far more talented and attractive? right?
i was originally referring to acting talent, not looks.
nobody said it was okay, plat. just saying why stanley did it.
ummmm.... this thread is about the final scene, right? how did connie get tossed in here? hmmmmmmmmm
LOL
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it is a proven fact that stanley was in vietnam. he even said it in the film.
this is why he likes asian chicks better
besides, the reporter was hotter even with out make up. but if she wore makeup, he mighta liked her more. but it was still more than connie. connie was lame. (not that she needed to be shot for it though)
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Some of the change of heart could probably be explained by the fact that White finally got results - killed Joey - which a) had been their ultimate goal, and b) was justice served for Tracy's rape.
shareThere was nothing happy about the ending exept for the music. Nothing was resolved, nothing was forgiven, Stanleys life was *beep*
shareConsidering everything that the audience had gone through, that was such a cheesy BS way to end the movie. I get how, in his blind rage, he starts a riot at the final funeral procession, then what's this sudden canoodling with Tracey right afterwards, with this happy music coming in?
He's just lost his job, his wife, his partner, his undercover guy, and the friendship and respect of his friends and fellow police officers. She's been physically assaulted and raped, and probably reprimanded by her bosses for her reporting on Joey Tai. That's not to mention the emotional minefield that now exists between them. If anything, Stanley's racism and disregard for those around him would be exacerbated, not diminished! I can't see how the ending made any sense.
http://newsforcreativelunatics.blogspot.com/
Stanley never had any friends. His immediate boss (who was his friend) told White that while he was a great cop, no one like him. Stanley did not like office politics, and lazy and/or corrupt cops which included his boss. What about Stanley's immediate boss's attitude toward the Chinese, he did not like them either?
share