Parachutist
Who is he and what's he doing there?
Has he landed in the wrong movie?
Is it Boyle, resurrected but misplaced?
*Danny's not here, Mrs. Torrance*
"I don't think this is where I was supposed to land."
Symbolism for how life doesn't always go the way or take you to the place you expect.
I'll take that.
Thanks for the reply.
*Danny's not here, Mrs. Torrance*
Alternatively, or simply additionally, perhaps a sign that the place Ballinger has "landed" in his flight from life is not where he should be. (In other words, he should leave his retreat and return to life, which is what he does.)
I do also like the parallel you've seen with Boyle, who in his downward spiral falls to his death, whereas Ballinger by contrast realizes his doesn't have to end the same way, that he still has a chance to walk away alive. Lends a kind of irony to Ballinger's saying to Boyle earlier that "the difference between you and me is that I never liked life well enough."