MovieChat Forums > Mad Dog and Glory (1993) Discussion > Pity is Not Romantic (Spoilers)

Pity is Not Romantic (Spoilers)

posted 10 years ago by Kevinology_Rises
2 replies | jump to latest

Did anyone else get the impression that Glory just pitied Wayne as opposed to actually wanting to be with him? I may be wrong, but I don't recall her ever saying she loved him back and the attraction did seem extremely one sided. At the end, when he's sitting on the doorstep and he asks her what she wants to do, she gives him a look which clearly indicates pity, not admiration or love, before saying "Let's go home". She feels obligated after what he's done for her not to leave him in the dust, so being a kind woman she decides to stick around for him.

Was this the intention? Because it seemed as though the director was trying to make the ending all romantic with Wayne fighting for the girl, getting the girl, living happily ever after etc. but to me it just didn't come off that way due to Glory's pitiful glances and general reluctance. Sure, it's possible that she might grow to love him, and I suppose it is refreshing to see a slightly more complicated and odd couple portrayed in a movie rather than the usual we-both-love-each-other-after-three-seconds-of-screen-time bollocks, but still... kinda left me cold. Realistically, in relationships born out of pity, the woman (or man) tends to grow resentful of their partner for making them feel obligated, and eventually leaves them for someone else or has an affair.

Valar morghulis

[–] ACureforPain 9 years ago

That was my feeling as well. I never got the impression that Uma loved him, so the supposedly happy ending left a sour taste in my mouth.

You have to make the money to buy a ticket. - Nightcrawler

[–] StefanCrosscoe 8 years ago

Was this the intention? Because it seemed as though the director was trying to make the ending all romantic with Wayne fighting for the girl, getting the girl, living happily ever after etc. - Kevinology_Rises

By the way, great post.

I read somewhere that the director wanted Glory to be more cynical/manipulative towards Wayne, but there were reshoots done, to make it have more of a commercial appeal, including an ordinary love story, and the same goes for the poorly done fight sequence in the end, were Murray is beating De Niro like a dog then suddenly De Niro gets super human powers and fights back like he is acting in Raging Bull.

That's the only complaint I have of this film. The ending is too cuddly, even though I enjoy a feel-good happy ending, this one was a bit of a let down and I would love to see the director's original cut version of the end, if it exists.

I could see that Glory and Wayne's relationship would not hold up for very long, and that she would either grow bored and go back to Milo or most likely reunite with her brother.
For Wayne's part, I think he might hook up with his female neighbor and from now on get a lot more respect by his co-workers after standing up for himself.