My issue with the ending (spoilers)

I know what you mean, I didn't want them to ride of into the sunset as fugitives but at the same time I didn't want them to get caught, I found it to be an unsatisfying end no matter which way it went to be honest I think thats all because of the set up for the last act, though I still really enjoyed the movie

Where did the 'serves 5 years' come from? I watched last night and assumed the leaving prison scene was a daydream prompted by the post cards Debora sent him. Now that I think about it I'm wondering about the significance of so many of the cards being blank.
But having said that I'm not sure about the ending either. I favour a completely unrealistic driving off in to the sunset for a happy ending.

I'm pretty sure him "getting out" was meant as a daydream scene. The color grading changed to a cooler color temperature and it matched an earlier daydream scene. However, the director has said that people can interpret the ending however they like.

As for the scentencing... just because they said he would be eligible for parole in 5 years does not mean that he would get parole in 5 years. That would be heavily dependent on many factors, including his behavior while in prison.

The sentence also depends on what he was charged with and how good his lawyers are. I think the character witnesses were important in establishing that Baby himself did not kill any of those officers or innocent bystanders. It was also important that he was manipulated, blackmailed and forced into the situation. Most trials have two phases. One phase is for conviction and the second is for sentencing. During the sentencing phase, character witnesses, motivation, and personal circumstances come into play.

With a good lawyer, I could see them getting his charge reduced to voluntary manslaughter without malice aforethought, which would carry a sentence of between 3 and 11 years in the state of California. A really, really good lawyer with a cooperative client, might be able to convince the state to go for involuntary manslaughter. That would require proving that Baby was essentially blackmailed into this. "Duress" is an affirmative defense which is generally defined as "Unlawful pressure exerted upon a person to coerce that person to perform an act that he or she ordinarily would not perform." Under common law, this could absolve all crimes except murder.

None of this is guaranteed; every case is different. But, I imagine Baby's case would be highly publicized, would draw the attention of large law firms looking to make a name for themselves and his side of the story would be spread out across the 24-hour news.

Either way, I don't think the sentence is beyond the stretch of the imagination.

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The whole thing about heading west in a car you can't afford without a plan is an indicator about the sequel. I wanna say they'll end up in LA, but it's possible they'll just end up in St. Louis or Dallas.

I think Wright flipped a coin...and it landed on its edge. :-)

I came on just to discuss the ending cause it was a pretty good movie up until then. The ending seemed really contrived. We know it was done to turn it into a happy ending, but it made the movie worse. I dropped it a half-a-star for it. It could be a whole star.

If Baby and Debora just drove off into the sunset, then it would leave too many questions unanswered and Baby would just be running away from his crimes. I don't think that is too satisfactory. Or if he is caught and sent to prison for twenty five years would be too much a downer. There would be no resolution to the couple's relationship.

Instead, I could've lived with an unhappy ending where he is sentenced for twenty five years, but the judge gives him a chance in that he could get paroled in five. The director could have left it open ended for the audience to figure out what happens to the couple. We do not need to see the victims come back to testify how Baby was of good character. We already know what happened to him and what his character was like.

ETA: There would be people who would want the victim's testimony as to his character, but it's not necessary. It's better to give the audience credit for what they know about the main character and his relationship. It also leaves open enough story for a sequel.

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