How much of this was in her head?
Did David really reappear in her life and torment her?
Was the whole thing, including David showing up, in her head as she was anxious about her daughter leaving her for school?
Was it all real up to the point where she pulled the baby out of him after killing him?
Good question. My interpretation was that David was real AND she was severely anxious about her daughter leaving for school. As far how far things were "real" I would say things became a fantasy for her when she finally removed the "baby" from David. And in the final frames where she is talking to her daughter, it definitely seemed dream like with the lighting and the way the daughter's voice sounded. Killing David finally broke her. I don't believe she sustained life threating wounds during her final confrontation with him, so I believe likely the police found her in the room holding his liver next to her claiming it was her baby and she ended up in an institution somewhere.
shareNice interpretation. Why did it take 22 years for David to reappear? And why was David not arrested for killing the baby at the time? Or is she so screwed up that there never was a baby at all - 22 years ago, I mean.
shareWell, she gave birth at home, so as far as the world is concerned, there was no baby or any record of one. Can't get arrested for killing a baby that doesn't legally exist, and she never told anyone.
Perhaps it took him 22 years to track her down? We don't know if she changed her name or anything. Or it just popped into his head one day? Or something else happened in his life to spur his desire? We don't know anything about what he's been doing for the past 22 years, so it's kinda pointless to speculate I guess.
Margaret did change her name. When David was in her office, he was making of her last name Ballion, saying how prefect her prior name Maggie Mary Walsh was.
shareI agree the final scene was a delusion. Everything was bright. The daughter was dresses like Margaret always wanted her to (not in a sweatshirt). It was ethereal.
But there were hints that earlier incidents that hint at mental illness.
- The hotel lady saying there was no David Moore in the hotel, then screaming like a banshee once she found Margaret in someone's room.
- I also found it odd that David would stay in a run-down hotel and walk around all night long.
- When the daughter and "boyfriend" confronted Margaret, the daughter said she was afraid her mother was having an "episode." I took that to be one in a series of episodes. She might have used the word breakdown if it was a solitary event.
David wasn’t real. She was mentally ill.
share