MovieChat Forums > Ransom (1996) Discussion > Anyone sympathize with Jimmy Shaker's ph...

Anyone sympathize with Jimmy Shaker's philosophy?


I thought Shaker's "Time Machine" about the rich being the Eloi and the poor being Morlocks was pretty accurate. The rich basically live in a bubble, their reality insulated from what the poor have to go through, living of the labor of the poor which makes their world possible.

People will say things like "The child was innocent of anything. He can't be held responsible for any of his father's past actions. The child didn't deserve the trauma of being kidnapped." But a lot of things happen in this world to innocent people, especially the poor, a lot of which is the results of decisions and structures designed by the rich. Is it worse that a kid is kidnapped because he's rich, the case gets the special attention of the FBI because of who his father is? What about all the bad things that happen to people who dont have influential daddies. No one cares when the poor are played off against one another, harming each other, but when it happens to a rich kid its a national tragedy.

In the movie, we're made to sympathize with Mullen and revile Shaker, but in reality people like Mullen cause a lot more harm and suffering than Shaker does.

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Nah, he was a nutjob.
But he believed in himself, which made him an excellent villain.




Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down and a Wagging Finger of Shame

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Shaker made some good points but it still doesn't excuse him to kill an innocent creature. It's not the kid's fault for his father's actions. Okay? Also Shaker wanted more money than he needed. Why kill an innocent creature for more money than you need for your survival? Yes he makes some good points but he's still a cold blooded killer.

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