Middle Eastern Grocery Store Owner...


So the Middle Eastern Grocery store owner decided to randomly walk into the hood and choke out Mister?

This was imo the dumbest part of the film....and unfortunately serves as an important plot device (finally getting Mister to the Riverview group home)

I mean...who does that? It had been several days (weeks maybe?) since he had last seen Mister in his store, and he just happens to be taking a stroll in his neighborhood and decided to choke out a 13 year old?

....Poor writing in that scene...

Rest of the movie was good though

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[deleted]

Firstly, just because the actor is Indian, it doesn't mean he was portraying an Indian person in the movie. Secondly, I said Middle Eastern as a generality (one that people can relate to, since many people will not know this person by name...and the average person will likely not be able to relate to the phrase 'South Asian')...And this point is completely irrelevant to the question to begin with anyhow...

My point is you had never seen him walking around that particular block beforehand, and he just happened to be there at the time?....Unlikely, but there's a small possibility, I suppose.

....But then he just happened to feel like choking out a 14 yr old?...Really?

This makes zero logical sense. It doesn't matter what had happened prior. He didn't think to call the cops? Snap a photo of him? Speak to his mom? (List goes on and on with how this would be realistically handled)....And needless to say there were also cops visibly present while he was attempting to choke him, as well as random tough-looking street-minded individuals who could possibly be related to Mister in some way, and could have potentially hurt/killed him for doing that...

On top of that, he didn't even consider how this would be adding fuel to the fire? The kid knows where his grocery store is (obviously) and can wreck his store later on, or bring some friends to trash and rob the place, or can potentially cause serious incidents with Mister's family members in the future...

It seems highly unlikely to me that any person who sets up shop in a tough neighborhood would not know the ins and outs of said neighborhood, or would simply choose to ignore them altogether...

....A far more realistic way to approach it, would have been if Mister stole one last thing form the Grocery Store and the owner chases him to his home. As Mister runs back home he sees the cops grab Pete. Then the Grocery Store owner catches up to, and grabs Mister, so the police could catch up and he then complains about his store as the cops are putting him away in the car...

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[deleted]

The actor and character are clearly Indian


You know this how? Your statistic only proves he is 'likely' Indian. Did they say that as fact in the film? No, they didn't. So you are free to interpret his ethnicity and background as w/e his facial features and skin color would allow you to believe. Middle Eastern and Indian are acceptable guesses, but neither one is definitely right or definitely wrong. And if you really believe the actor's actual ethnic background is automatically the ethnic background of the character they were cast as, you are committing a logical fallacy.

You said it as a raciality: you unnecessarily introduced a racialist (racialist =/=racist) interpretation of a character and like many Americans you believe the racialist myth that immigrants from the Middle East own all the groceries, gas stations, delis, and other small businesses in inner cities (**they don't)


Once again, it is a generalization. One many people can relate to (which you just admitted). One that makes it easier for people scrolling the thread to pick up on and go "oh yea 'that guy'" (hence why it was indeed necessary). If you can't comprehend that, then I suggest you go outside and socialize more. You seem to sorely need it.

The only people who will not know this person by name are people who despite being on IMDb fail to scan the cast list and click the actor's name page to learn something about the actor portraying the character


Yet again, you fail to realize that the generalization was meant to make the recognition of the character easier. Had I said his name, no one would know who I meant. You know why? His name is not mentioned in the film, he is listed as "Store Owner" on IMDB, and he isn't a well known enough actor to be recognized by his actual name. Once again you seem to have an issue with how typical human interaction operates...People will very likely not bother to look it up, and upon seeing the thread title will likely dismiss it, and move on to the next one. That's why I made the title a "click bait" (Look up the term, since you seem to be unfamiliar with this). And it worked...Since you clicked on it...

The average person 25 years of age and older knows where India and the Middle East are, if you don't know then start here: http://test.mywonderfulworld.org/about_campaign.html, a geography education project specially designed for kids and young adults


The average person may or may not know. You have no evidence that they do know. They should know, yes. But once again 'Middle Eastern' is a term everyone can identify with, since it's common. But, since we're throwing links around on what the average person should know, I've graciously gathered one for you. Use this once you decide to leave the confines of your mother's basement, and make sure to bring sunscreen as I'm sure it has been a while for you: http://www.wikihow.com/Interact-With-People

Now please leave the racial aspect to rest...Moving on to what's actually important:

All the characters in a film must be shown walking around every inch of the geographical landscape they are in before they interact with other, otherwise all their interactions are unlikely since we did not see them walk through the areas where they eventually crossed paths? 

The grocery store owner operates a store in the inner city and walks around the inner city where he owns his store. Mister lives in the inner city within walking distance of the store and Mister walks around the inner city where he lives and walks to the store twice. It is inevitable the grocery store owner and Mister will cross paths walking through the inner city they both inhabit and walk around in.

The title of the film is The Inevitable Defeat Of Mister & Pete for a reason. It was inevitable the Grocer and Mister would cross paths one final time after Mister's last visit to the store, and it was inevitable their meeting would not go well.


It's not an unlikely interaction in general (since the grocery store is nearby). But it's unlikely because in the film he has never spotted Mister walking around in his block beforehand, AND we are to assume he has never seen Mister walking outside his building for however many years that Mister lived nearby previously...And then at the exact moment Mister is asking Kris to help him release Pete from capture, is when he just so happens to be walking in the area to spot him (for the first time ever)? Too convenient story wise to be truly believable. It's highly improbable based on how he had never seen or bumped into him outside his building (or even outside in general) prior, and had no idea where he lived.

Also, the title doesn't justify bad writing...That's just a dumb argument...

90% of the world would feel like lashing out at a person of any age who destroyed his/her personal property. Every single second that you breath, people murder people for an infinite number of reasons and grievances, real and imaginary. Right now people are murdering each other over air and water and land and G-d. Right now people are murdering people unprovoked. And you think it's illogical for a property owner to attack somebody who vandalized his property. 

The grocery store owner was already broiling under his collar when he and Mister had their first meeting (EBT card). The grocery store owner was ready to explode during the second meeting (bag of ice) before Mister vandalized the store - the moment Mister entered the store the grocery store owner's anger was on display (remember he banned Mister from his store, and there Mister is, in his store again). That anger finally spilled out, coming to its logical conclusion, during their last meeting on the sidewalk.


Yes, they would "feel" like lashing out, but wouldn't. Especially when there are police officers and possible relatives/threats nearby...People kill all the time is simply a bad argument. You could just say killing anyone for anything is justified for whatever intention, with that reasoning. In-case you haven't realized this isn't the Middle Ages. There are large consequences for committing such acts, and as such you need a good motive, and a good reason not to be able to take alternative measures.

List of motives where killing would make logical sense:
-to steal and survive on a day to day basis makes sense
-killing as to not deal with a messy divorce and/or...
-to reap the benefits of life insurance makes sense
-revenge on the death of a family member makes sense

...killing some kid who pushed some of your store's merchandise does not.

The anger and attack make zero logical sense if you ignore what happened prior. And the Grocer's anger and violent attack make zero logical sense if you ignore the context of the environment depicted in the film (inner city hood, drugs sold up and down the streets, hoodlums up and down the streets, prostitution up and down the streets, gangs up and down the streets, police up and down the streets, etc) the Grocer is part of, which was clearly and realistically depicted in the film.


...And the environment he worked in didn't justify his actions. He was a store owner, not a corrupt pimp drug dealer...In which case, it would have made slightly more sense...

How do you know he didn't (call the cops or snap a photo of him)?


Because the film doesn't show it, or allude to it.

Did you actually watch this film? Mister could not find his mother for either weeks or months and you think the Grocer could have magically dialled her up and spoke to her? Mister could not have a straightforward conversation with his mother because she was in a drug haze, she left him starving and living in squalour and prostituted herself within a few feet of her son and you think his mother and the Grocer could have had a heart-to-heart conversation about Mister desperately seeking a bag of ice because his mother and Pete's mother abandoned them and vandalized the store because he could not get any ice?


*Dialed. *Squalor.

He did not know Mister's situation, but I'm guessing he knew who his mom was. I'm not calling it a solution to the problem. I'm saying it's a realistic response and he never attempted it. Same with contacting the police, or snapping a photo of him.

Did you actually watch this film? Those hoodlums were not random, they were pimping prostitutes, they were pimping Mister's mom and they were pimping Pete's mom, the beginning of the film showed the head pimp pimping Pete's mom, Mister knew they were pimping his mom and he went out of his way to track down the head pimp to interrogate him about his mother's whereabouts, and Mister risqued his life confronting the pimp, especially since he confronted the pimp aggressively and embarrassed the pimp


*Risked. 😂 (See how annoying it is when you attack things that have nothing to do with the initial argument?)

Anyhow, at this point I'm convinced you are either purposely trying to misinterpret what I mean, or happen to be devoid of comprehension skills...Obviously we (the viewer) know the relationship of the surrounding individuals and Mister, but the store owner did not. Which is my point. He had no clue if either of those 50 or so men hanging outside would be relatives or close friends of Mister (very possible, since they are hanging out in front of a compound of buildings) and hence beat the store owner to a pulp (which almost happened btw). Therefore you can conclude his actions make zero logical sense...especially if he has dealt with, and knows the inner workings of the impoverished neighborhoods surrounding his store, and how dangerous street-life is in the area.

Lastly, you failed to mention why he would attack when there were clearly police present...This makes your entire argument flawed.

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> You know this how? Your statistic only proves he is 'likely' Indian.

Your post is so full of TLDR that I couldn't be bothered to get past that first line, but I can tell you how I knew the guy was indian:

(a) I know what indians look like and they don't look like middle-easterners.
(b) The music playing in his store was indian, not middle-eastern.

That you can't tell the difference between them doesn't mean the difference isn't clear to anyone with a little experience.

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I know what indians look like and they don't look like middle-easterners.

Right...

I googled "Middle Eastern People." Came up with this...

Example 1- https://asaloneasyoucanbe.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/arab-man.jpg

Example 2- https://billygambelaafroasiaticanthropology.files.wordpress.com/2009/0 5/dark-colored-yemenis.jpg

Example 3- https://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3371/3497600338_2112e60499.jpg

Example 4-
http://footage.framepool.com/shotimg/624195092-moustache-middle-easter n-ethnicity-dark-haired-face.jpg

Example 5- http://www.bfmtv.com/i/580/290/bfm/354946.jpg

Example 6- http://unews.utah.edu/wp-content/uploads/juan-herrero-photography-17.j pg

Example 7- http://byuihumanities.weebly.com/uploads/1/1/6/5/1165260/7845380.jpg?3 40x223

Example 8-
http://blogs.aljazeera.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/FeaturedImag ePost/images/new%20rana%202.JPG

Example 9- https://iransnews.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/ahmadinejad-jewish-full. jpg

Example 10- http://catholicphilly.com/media-files/2012/09/Iraqi-Christians.jpg


Yea you're totally right. They look drastically different. I wouldn't even be able to tell the Store Owner and them are from the same planet...


The Middle East Includes: Egypt, Iran, Turkey, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Syria, United Arab Emirates, Israel, Jordan, Palestine, Lebanon, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and Cyprus. That's quite a large group of people with tons of different looks.

If you don't believe it is difficult to tell the difference between an Indian and a Middle Eastern person, then by all means inform us all on the differences that make it so painfully obvious.

The music playing in his store was indian, not middle-eastern.


Yes because the average person is fully capable of telling the difference between Arabic, Aramaic, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Balochi, Greek, Hebrew, Kurdish, Persian, Somali, & Turkish dialects (all with their own regional specific varieties btw) vs those of Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithili, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Tulu, & Urdu

So no it is not a stretch to believe the character in the film is Middle Eastern vs Indian. I'm sure he is supposed to be Indian. However, Middle Eastern is again a viable and reasonable conclusion for the average person watching this film to make.

If you don't believe it is, then I also suppose Zoe Saldana can't be anything other than Colombian based solely on the fact that she stars in the film "Colombiana"....

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[deleted]

[deleted]

you fail to realize that the generalization was meant to make the recognition of the character easier


the issue i have with this is not whether the store owner is middle eastern or not. the issue i have is that there is only one store owner in the whole movie (the other store employee Mister and Pete meet is clearly a cashier, not an owner). whether you got his nationality right or wrong is not the point - it was irrelevant to the post and not necessary for making sure people knew who you were talking about.

have you tried that crazy wrap thing?! http://erinleighmckenzie.myitworks.com

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I haven't seen this movie yet. I saw the title on Netflix and came here to see what other people were saying about it first.

I disagree with you on this point. It is not only possible, but probable for that type of encounter to happen in just the way you've described was shown in the movie.

For one, a person doesn't have to have a history of doing something in order for it to "make sense" for them to start doing it. Have you NEVER done something for the first time that isn't part of your regular routine? It's silly to suggest that he had to have a reason to walk around his own or another neighborhood (or anywhere else, for that matter). People change their routines all the time!

Secondly, a person that has been a victim of a crime or otherwise violated by a person often feels helpless and scared simply because we "expect" to live in the world and not encounter those types of incidents. It is extremely common to harbor feelings of anger, frustration and even thoughts of retaliation. It usually doesn't matter how unlikely is it to ever run into the person/s that violated us - just knowing that someone did is enough to ignite these feelings. (Side note: This is why victims of crimes typically fear anybody of the same gender, race, size, etc. even knowing that the strangers fitting the description of the person that hurt them is NOT the person that did it).

Lastly, if you think back through your life experiences, I am almost positive that you will recall an incident in which you held bad feelings against someone. It may not have been something as strong as being vandalized. Consider ANY incident that left bad feelings in your mind. How do you feel when you see that person again? I'm assuming you wouldn't physically attack the person as most people are able to control their anger to avoid that kind of reaction. But, the point is, you do not maintain the same level of rational thinking and kind regards to that person as you would for people you care about or otherwise have not had negative experienes with, correct? It's human (and I'm pretty sure you fit into that category ;-)

By the way, a similar incident happened to me the other day. Last year, I had a very negative and distressing incident happen with another adult at my children's school. Thankfully, nobody was hurt, but the police were involved and there was a huge commotion. I have not seen or spoken with that person since that time and had no intentions of ever doing so after the awful incident. I went to my children's school and saw someone else I recognized. I stopped to speak to that person and the other person walked up to me. All the anger, frustration, etc. that I've felt toward that person since last year came rushing back instantly. I did not react violently but I did have a sense of dread and want to be as far away from there as possible. I have to go back next week and I can't stop thinking of different ways to be on the campus and NOT see this person. I will never react violently but I don't want to see this person for any reason.



Get busy living, or get busy dying. Andy (The Shawshank Redemption)

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Just watch the way the movie puts it first, then we'll talk.

For the record I agree that people can certainly have negative feelings and lash out on someone else who has wronged them. That's not the argument I'm making.


My Two Arguments Are:

1)how unlikely it would have been given the circumstances of the movie, that anyone would act as the store owner did at the end of the film.

2)how unlikely the meeting between the store owner and Mister is at the end of the movie, considering the store owner had never been seen walking in that area previously in the film, and hadn't ever walked by that area or seen Mister there in the past 10 years or so prior.


PS: Hope things turn out fine with regards to you and the other parent.

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Fair enough. I plan to.

Just keep in mind that nobody is perfect. Despite all the crazy posts all over the internet with people nitpicking every little thing, especially women's looks, is it no wonder we have so many people paying to have their faces and bodies cut up often beyond recognition?

At the end of the day. It's a movie. It's someone's story come to life on the screen and it doesn't have to make perfect sense or be logical or even entertaining. It's just a movie - a quick couple of hours escape from the chores, work, errands and stressors of life...at least, hopefully.






Get busy living, or get busy dying. Andy (The Shawshank Redemption)

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it's unlikely because in the film he has never spotted Mister walking around in his block beforehand, AND we are to assume he has never seen Mister walking outside his building for however many years that Mister lived nearby previously...And then at the exact moment Pete is captured is when he just so happens to be walking in the area to spot him (for the first time ever)? Too convenient story wise to be truly believable. It's highly improbable based on how he had never seen or bumped into him outside his building (or even outside in general) prior, and had no idea where he lived.


this scene did not take place at the same time Pete was captured, or even on the same day. there is a night scene between Pete getting picked up and Mister getting picked up - so at least a day between scenes - and the fact that Pete has what looks to be a nearly-healed black eye by the time Mister gets to Riverview, which seems to signify a longer period of time between the scenes. coupled with the fact that we have seen how long Mister will go trying to do things on his own, it is possible he's struggled through at least a few days since Pete was picked up before breaking down and asking Chris for help. believing that the two scenes happen on the same day may be contributing to your belief that this is improbable, because that would be entirely too coincidental.

how unlikely the meeting between the store owner and Mister is at the end of the movie, considering the store owner had never been seen walking in that area previously in the film, and hadn't ever walked by that area or seen Mister there in the past 10 years or so prior


i really think you're making too much of this point. so because we are not shown the store owner walking in this neighbourhood, it is unlikely that he will ever walk there? it is just as likely that he was never shown walking there because it was not important to the story until this particular time. we were not shown Pete ever being sick before - is it, therefore, unlikely that he became sick just at this particular moment that we were were watching? as intelligent audience members, we can extrapolate from the information we are shown and assume that, since the store owner worked every day in this neighbourhood, he would be walking in that area twice each day - once on his way to work and once on his way home (or at least to where he parked, if he drove there and needed to park a couple blocks away). he may or may not have ever seen Mister out on the street while he was walking, but what does that have to do with anything? it would have been of no significance if he had, previous to this specific time. in fact, had the filmmaker made a point to show the store owner encountering Mister out on the street previous to this, i would accuse him of wasting film time and trying to spoonfeed the audience.

as to your entire point of it being unlikely that the store owner would choke out a 14 year old boy, i would like to be naive enough to agree with you. you and i would not react the way he did, and thankfully most rational people would not handle their problems by physically assaulting a child, but some people do. absolutely. was he thinking about the fact that he might get beaten up by someone in the area who was related to Mister? nope. was he thinking about the fact that there were police officers around? nope. he was blind and single-minded with rage - there was that little punk @$$ kid who'd stolen from him and vandalized his store, and by God he was going to teach him a lesson. yes, there are people who behave that way (fortunately they are not the majority) so i don't agree with you that this is poor writing or improbable.

have you tried that crazy wrap thing?! http://erinleighmckenzie.myitworks.com

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this scene did not take place at the same time Pete was captured, or even on the same day. there is a night scene between Pete getting picked up and Mister getting picked up - so at least a day between scenes - and the fact that Pete has what looks to be a nearly-healed black eye by the time Mister gets to Riverview, which seems to signify a longer period of time between the scenes. coupled with the fact that we have seen how long Mister will go trying to do things on his own, it is possible he's struggled through at least a few days since Pete was picked up before breaking down and asking Chris for help. believing that the two scenes happen on the same day may be contributing to your belief that this is improbable, because that would be entirely too coincidental


You're right here. I completely messed up and misinterpreted the scene the first time I viewed it. Furthermore, I completely missed the night scene since it happened so quickly. Edited in the way the scene really happened in my previous comments. I thought it was on the same day at first. It wasn't.

However I believe it is still too coincidental, and that my points still stand. Why was it at that specific moment that the Store Owner finally saw him? Why did he not notice Mister lived so close by? Why didn't he wait for him in that general area? Why attack in front of possible friends/ family members and police present in the area?

i really think you're making too much of this point. so because we are not shown the store owner walking in this neighborhood, it is unlikely that he will ever walk there? it is just as likely that he was never shown walking there because it was not important to the story until this particular time.


False. I'm giving it this much attention because it was so central to the story that Mister is caught by Police. The way it's handled is very unrealistic. Because it is so important to the story it deserves careful analysis. We can infer from the information given to us that he had no idea he lived there.
1) The look on his face when he sees him
2) Why didn't he simply take a day off and wait in that general area for Mister if he was so hell-bent on "getting even" with him?
3) He never told police about him. With a general description and a likely address, he would have surely been able to bring him to justice.
4) They had never bumped into each other in that area earlier in the film.

he was blind and single-minded with rage - there was that little punk @$$ kid who'd stolen from him and vandalized his store


Already tackled why the blinded by rage argument is unreasonable, in other comments on the thread. Read them.

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He's not middle eastern you moron

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He's not middle eastern you moron


*Middle Eastern (Ethnonyms are capitalized)

You also missed the comma between Eastern and you.

Funny how you wrote only six words, and already had two grammatical errors.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anyhow, to answer this:

It was a guess. His background wasn't stated, so you are free to do so.

Did you see his birth certificate in the movie? Did you see anyone say he wasn't?

...No, you didn't?

Well I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and take another guess: You are simply able to tell everyone's exact ethnic background, based on the way they look (despite the vast multitude of variables) with the help of prophetic insight. Do you tell people not to include their ethnic background & nationality while working your minimum wage position at the DMV, because "you can simply tell"? Or better yet, do you check off what they initially put down and instead check-mark what you feel fits their look better?

Now that I think of it, this doesn't make much sense does it?...

Ah, I know! Maybe if I see some of your other comments, I can tell just what kind of person you are. Let's look at some other examples of your shining enlightenment, and remarkable insight:

In previous posts you wrote-

Never post here again clown


So you not agreeing with someone's view on a movie forum is grounds to take away his First Amendment right to freedom of speech? Interesting...

If you're still calling the genre "shaky cam" you need to go kill yourself. It's found footage....


Wow, I see..So describing a sub-genre of horror using a well-known descriptive term is grounds to dismiss yourself from existence? Even more Interesting...

Well then, it seems you have no insight, or reasoning, or justification in any of your comments really...

That kind of settles it then. Kindly find yourself to the nearest pile of donkey dung, the best blender you can find, and rinse your mouth with the literal equivalent of what you just said.

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[deleted]

...And again you miss the comma between cliff and you. (Are you purposely trying to make yourself look bad?)

Anyhow, you were already destroyed in the last comment, and like a bad sequel you should stay down.


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[deleted]

Well lol LMFAO

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You're an idiot...

It doesn't matter how the intellectual greats of the past, used to use language. We don't speak like Shakespeare nowadays, do we? Asking for one comma, as to not make one look like an imbecile after 5 words of dialogue, should not be a vast or drastic feat.

On top of that, you never made any attempt at a rebuttal to your obviously flawed logic on the actual topic discussed.

You two instead choose to focus on the Middle Eastern vs Indian debate. Hence, why I pointed out the previous gentleman's poor and sloppy grammar, as I did to you. (A jab at both of you, since you both seem so stuck on me calling the store owner Middle Eastern in the OP, which yet again has nothing to do with said OP...)

My advice to you "AlongTheGreatToneRiver," is to use "themondoshow's" hard-earned 9 bucks an hour to buy some specially made rectum-flavored condoms, from a Middle Eastern or Indian store owner's grocery store. Next you should insert his tiny man sausage into your mouth, so that you can taste penis and ass at the same time. It would serve you well to literally have the flavor of your flawed logic in your mouth, so that you refrain from using said flawed logic in the future.

Good day gentlemen.

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[deleted]

[deleted]

What a meltdown, thanks for the laugh

What meltdown? Is there a volcano I should be aware of?

Oh, you must mean the meltdown of your terrible logic. Don't worry, it can be contained if you actually think before speaking.

We do speak like Shakespeare, we use his language

No we don't. We use certain words that he just happened to also use...There's a difference. And btw, some of those words he used in his literature, have entirely different meanings today, so that argument is just ridiculous all around...

you're dismissing the history of language and semiotics in the same exact way you dismissed Mister's two previous encounters with the grocery store owner that culminated in the inevitable third encounter (strangling)

No I didn't. I clearly mentioned that despite ALL previous encounters, it was still not justified...

you're clearly uneducated and illiterate yourself, you lack common sense...and you referred to living current writers (Sister Souljah, Cormac McCarthy, Mark Z. Danielewski, Susan Minot) as dead ("great writers of the past")....

Well you used "you're" in the right context, so I suppose you earn points for that. However, you deserve for those points to be swiftly taken away as the rest of this statement is complete BS.

I've clearly shown myself to be far more literate than you, both in my writing and in my ability to interpret what is written. You on the other hand say things like "you wrote 'great writers of the past,'" when I clearly wrote "intellectual greats of the past, used to use language." You named about 50 different people, groups, and civilizations (far too many to prove a point, which still remains unproven btw). Why would I address each single one individually?...

...Have you read that wikihow article yet? Here it is again, in case you missed it: http://www.wikihow.com/Interact-With-People

you're mocking Mister's literacy problems

No I did not...I never did, and I have no clue how you came to that conclusion...

And in addition to being racist (labeling an Indian a Middle Eastern based on racialist myth) you're sexist because you (not surprisingly) categorized me as male when I'm not.

Racism is not (wrongly or correctly) guessing the ethnicity of a person via visual information...If it were, then literally everyone would be classified as racist, because we all do this. It's called human nature.

Sexism is not (wrongly or correctly) guessing someone's gender via written information...

The only time guessing an ethnicity or gender is racist or sexist respectively, is if it's primarily due to a negative trait or connotation.

Therefore, you are not only wrong on literally all accounts with that statement, but also a proven idiot.

final part of your last response demonizes Mister's own mother, who prostituted herself

No it does not. I never mentioned Mister's mother. Nor did I allude to prostitution. I stated you should buy condoms, and give fellatio to the minimum wage DMV employee you unjustly defended. Again, you prove to have terrible reading comprehension skills.

This is simply far too easy. Please stop responding. It's clear you are obsessed with my superior intellect and arguments, but I must ask you to leave me alone, as I have an actual life with precious time in said life, and precious money to make with said time.

Good day (yet again)

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[deleted]

know no nothing whatsoever about anything

Yea, I'm not even going to fully respond to this.

I'll just let everyone else look at your ridiculous comments, and I'll sit back and let your responses sink in.

Post by post, you continue to make yourself look even more delusional and foolish.

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@Abeness23

The grocer was Indian,period. See the movie.

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The grocer was Indian,period.


Completely missed the point of the thread. Period.

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(Sorry, not going to touch the rest of this thread)

So I watched this last night, and when the Indian (looked/sounded Indian to me, we have many Indian immigrants in my area. I can see why someone not familiar with that populations would say middle eastern though) store owner first grabbed Mister, I thought it was a little too violent for what had been established for his character too. After a little thought, I realized that it wasn't that far out of left field.

- The shopkeeper had chased Mister out of the store with a bat at least twice
- The shopkeeper was a minority within a minority area, and was probably victimized by racism himself. Perhaps things reached a breaking point.
- The shopkeeper probably would have chased Mister further, but he seemed to be alone in the store/unable to leave the store
- This was the first time we saw him outside of the store, and he looked to be taking a break. Mister's projects were LITERALLY across the street, the shopkeeper was standing in front of his store when he saw him.
- The shopkeeper, a small business owner probably also not living above the poverty line, probably living near those projects, had probably seen countless young African American men (because that was the majority population there) shoplifting or committing minor vandalism on his shop (NOT saying white people don't do these things, there just didn't appear to be any white folks in that area). He didn't notice Mister's bedraggled, filthy appearance because when Mister was first banned, he WAS clean and fed (as much as his junkie mom was able to provide for him). By the time poor, starving Mister knocked the shelves over, all he saw was his own rage.

So, IMHO, it didn't seem counterintuitive for the shopkeeper to act that way.

They're coming to get you, Barbara!

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I don't really agree with the points made, but thanks for actually answering the question that was stated.

I'll wait for some more people to chime in, and then I'll break down my position further.

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[deleted]

I answered literally all of those concerns with rebuttals earlier, in a reply towards your comment.

Since you seem to lack the reading comprehension skills necessary to understand them the first time, I will write them again, even clearer.

You do not agree that it is natural, rational, logical, normal, and inevitable for people who live within a few blocks of each other to cross paths with each other?

Yes, bumping into someone who works near where you reside is natural, rational and logical. You know what isn't? Them not bumping into each other (outside Mister's home) earlier in the film, or the 10 or so years prior to the film taking place....but then conveniently having it happen at the exact moment Mister asked Kris for help (with Police Present in the area). The timing was too far-fetched.

*And yes, you can gather he had no idea Mister lived there due to A) his reaction upon seeing him & B) never bothering to look or wait for him in the area.

We Will Prosecute Shoplifters

Yea, it said "we will prosecute," not "we will choke you unconscious, even if you are a minor."

Why did he not call the cops, and give them a description? You know, prosecute?

the grocer, a minority himself, operating a store in an area crawling with crime and poverty and desperation, was a victim himself

He might have felt targeted, but the film doesn't delve deep enough into his story for us to gather that he was targeted and/or discriminated against. It is still possible, but imo would still not justify his actions either way. Now I'm not saying it was completely out of character for him to go after Mister, because he did seem like a stern no bs store owner, who had to be that way to survive. However, it's one thing to be stern and threaten kids with a bat, and another to actually go that far. What if he had a bat handy when he saw him? Would beating Mister to a bloody pulp have also been justified, and within character? He did not seem the type to do that to me.

And again, the most important point: If he was going to do it, why in the world would he choose to choke him out while there were clearly police officers and possible family members of Mister present?...

You did not notice the grocer was already boiling with rage in the first store scene...and his mannerisms aggressive mannerisms towards Mister

No, I'm not buying the 'blinded by rage' theory, since he could have easily continued running after him with the bat, and attacked him outside, on more than one occasion, if I remember correctly.

And yet again, if he was really THAT furious, he could have easily called the cops and given a description. He did not. Clearly, he was not THAT furious.

You do not agree the grocer store owner would have felt any desire to attack a customer for vandalising his store

Perhaps...Except it wasn't an adult; it was a minor. This changes everything. Also, "feeling" like attacking someone, is different from actually doing it....Especially in-front of police. IN FRONT...OF...POLICE
(Notice the capitals. It shows how important that aspect is. No one has addressed this. Why in-front of cops? Why?)

Lastly, please do yourself and the rest of us all a favor, and stop posting nonsense. Any other response from you, that doesn't strictly tackle the OP or rebuttals to your argument, will be reported for trolling.

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[deleted]

You can't possibly be this stupid.

You keep repeating the same points you've previously stated (which have already been addressed), as if they become more valid the second time around, and you purposefully skip half the arguments made. Then, you riddle the rest of your response with personal attacks and false accusations, which don't even serve to strengthen your counter-arguments...After that, you sprinkle in nonsensical babble here and there, and viola... We have a wonderful array of hilariously dumb responses courtesy of "AlongTheGreatToneRiver."

You have to be a troll. There's no other explanation. Reported.

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[deleted]

The only thing that's collapsed is your brain from malnourishment, and your dry withered vagina from lack of activity.

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You have no clue at all. You can live in same area as someone in New York and not run into them, or you can randomly run into them. And there are store owners like the one in the film.

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You have no clue at all. You can live in same area as someone in New York and not run into them, or you can randomly run into them. And there are store owners like the one in the film.


Exactly. I live in the UK and there are loads of store owners just like him over here as well. As you observed, he's clearly supposed to be from the Indian subcontinent (India, Pakistan and Bangladesh). People from the Middle East have a drastically different accent.

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Alright "sargasm1," I decided to just go ahead and answer this, since another poster seems hilariously hell-bent on destroying the thread.

thought it was a little too violent for what had been established for his character...(but) after a little thought, I realized it wasn't

-Chasing someone with a bat, is not nearly the same as actually using said bat, so I disagree there

-We aren't given enough information to determine he was targeted by discrimination. All we know is some kid had stolen from the store before (which is quite typical, in any grocery store tbh)

-I disagree that he didn't chase Mister further due to him being alone in he store, for two reasons:
1) We are led to believe he is somewhat in an enraged state (where he isn't thinking clearly), since he attacked when there were clearly police present in the area (which, is just ridiculous btw). In this state (seeing how he attacked Mister with police present), we could gather he also wouldn't be thinking clearly enough to worry about leaving his store unattended.

2) Didn't he leave his store unattended to attack Mister, anyway!?

This was the first time we saw him outside of the store

-Yes, this is the first time we see the store owner outside his store. Not sure if he was standing in-front of his store or not. If he is, good find.

However, I would argue that is still too far-fetched. You're telling me he hadn't ever seen Mister outside his complex, in how many years (10 maybe!?) of them being that close vicinity-wise to each other? You're telling me he had no idea Mister lived right across the street!?...

The timing of him finding Mister outside his complex, just as police are nearby (after 10 years of never bumping into him), is too unrealistic for me to logically buy.

By the time poor, starving Mister knocked the shelves over, all he saw was his own rage

-I'm not saying his actions were counter-intuitive. I'm saying they were unrealistic, and too unnatural. You see, I would believe it if it wasn't a choke-hold. I refuse to believe a sane man could realistically choke-hold a child in-front of police (IN...FRONT...OF...POLICE), with the intent of 'putting him to sleep' or possibly even killing him, due to him toppling over some of his merchandise (not even breaking much of anything, mind you). Now if he had simply "grabbed" him for police to come nab him, now THAT would make sense.

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if you are the type of movie viewer that feels we can only use the information we see in the film's scenes and cannot extrapolate on that information, then i urge you to go back and re-watch the part from when Pete gets picked up until the police officer tells the store owner to let Mister go. you will see clearly that there is at least one day between the two boys being picked up, as opposed to your belief that it is happening at the same time or on the same day. you will also see that there is no visible police presence in the neighbourhood until the store owner has Mister in a chokehold. i've interpreted this to mean that the officer was off-camera and the store owner may have seen him and was so hell-bent on getting Mister that he didn't care, or that the officer was in a location that the store owner didn't see him either (perhaps he came around a corner or came out of a building at that moment). i am alright with either of those options, although if i were to raise an eyebrow at any improbability in this scene, it would be that the officer magically appears at the most convenient time.

can you please tell me what aspects of what we saw of the store owner led you to your certainty that he is sane?

and he did not leave his shop to attack Mister - he was clearly walking somewhere, already having left his shop, when he spotted him on the street.

have you tried that crazy wrap thing?! http://erinleighmckenzie.myitworks.com

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i urge you to go back and re-watch the part from when Pete gets picked up until the police officer tells the store owner to let Mister go. you will see clearly that there is at least one day between the two boys being picked up, as opposed to your belief that it is happening at the same time or on the same day.


You pointed this out previously. And I corrected it. Again, it doesn't change the argument very much...

you will also see that there is no visible police presence in the neighbourhood until the store owner has Mister in a chokehold. i've interpreted this to mean that the officer was off-camera and the store owner may have seen him and was so hell-bent on getting Mister that he didn't care, or that the officer was in a location that the store owner didn't see him either


Yea that's because our field of vision is infinitely smaller when seeing a film vs seeing something in real life. In real life it would have been incredibly easy to spot the police officers coming a mile away. If we are to believe they came that quickly, then they were clearly not very far away. It took them 18 seconds to arrive on the scene once the store owner commenced choking Mister, and after yelling "You. Drop the kid!" the police were immediately on screen, right in front of them (as you yourself admitted was rather silly)... Not to mention there were clearly police vehicles, in the area (stop the movie at 1:32:09).

Even if you can logically say he didn't see them coming (which you can't), the fact that there were police vehicles parked nearby would be enough evidence to say that there were clearly police officers in the area.

Then his reaction even after they saw him is even more silly and unbelievably unrealistic. He still continues to choke him for a good 8-9 seconds. Then he goes on to try and paint the picture that he was completely justified in his over-the-top approach to the Police Officers...I mean, really?


can you please tell me what aspects of what we saw of the store owner led you to your certainty that he is sane?


The fact that he can run a convenience store! **FacePalm**

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Yea that's because our field of vision is infinitely smaller when seeing a film vs seeing something in real life.


you're very right. which is why there is room for the possibility that the grocery store owner has seen Mister in the area many times before, but since it was not an integral point of the scene, he was never shown in the small field of vision of the film. you can't have it both ways. either there is only room for what we are shown - which means the police weren't visible to the grocery store owner because they weren't visible to the audience - or there is acceptance of the existence of characters that the audience can't see - which means the grocery store owner could have seen Pete numerous times that we aren't aware of.

Not to mention there were clearly police vehicles, in the area (stop the movie at 1:32:09).
Even if you can logically say he didn't see them coming (which you can't), the fact that there were police vehicles parked nearby would be enough evidence to say that there were clearly police officers in the area.


i most certainly can logically say that, and i already have. if they were around a corner or coincidentally coming out of a building at that precise moment, he wouldn't have seen them coming, and that is completely logical. the three options are: they were around the corner out of sight, inside a building out of sight, or standing on the street in direct view of the store owner - of the three options, two of them allow me to logically say he didn't see them coming. i have searched the entire scene for police cars, even stopping where you recommended, and the closest i can see for police cars is a quick glimpse of a white car with a horizontal stripe parked in a row of other cars. if that's all i can find actively searching for one, what are the chances a man in his mindset at that moment is going to see it?

The fact that he can run a convenience store! **FacePalm**


the man's ability to run a store is not evidence that the man is level-headed and sane. in every scene we see him in, he becomes increasingly angrier - we never see him happy, or even neutral. with the logic with which you judge movies (if it's not shown on the screen, it hasn't happened), we have to assume he is always angry, so his final explosion should come as no surprise. with the logic with which i judge movies (we can extrapolate what happens off-camera based on other information that's presented), we can assume he is sometimes happy and sometimes neutral, but has the tendency to respond with extreme anger towards Mister until finally he explodes. his ability to order inventory, stock shelves, and count proper change does not negate the possibility that he might freak out and do something violent.

have you tried that crazy wrap thing?! http://erinleighmckenzie.myitworks.com

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It was most realistic part of movie, and he was supposed to be Pakistani, Bangladeshi, or Indian, not Middle Eastern.

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It was most realistic part of movie

And you are the most stupid person on IMDB.

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I thought he was going overboard with the chocking. It seemed like he was trying to kill him. I just figured he was a nut, they do exist.

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I totally agree with you ToneRiver.

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Put yourself in his shoes

Every day he goes to a job he doesn't enjoy, and sees all these people getting food stamps for doing nothing. They come in and buy junk and maybe he doesn't have money for what he wants.

Plus he's constantly having stuff stolen, I'm guessing it's his store. He works hard and people who don't work at all steal from him!

Sometimes we see the result of the straw that broke the camel's back, without seeing all the pieces of straw that came before.

Plus, Mister was smaller than the bigger guys that stole from him. And when Mister knocked down the displays, later the guy says stuff was broken - again, probably money out of his pocket.

So I totally disagree with you that it was too unbelievable a scene.

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