I was with it until... - Don't Breathe (2016) Discussion

[–] iheartnormi 8 years ago

I don't think the burglars were vile. The only vile one was the Money guy. We saw a back story on Rocky, came from trailer trash home verbally abusive mother, moms weird boyfriend is living in the house, not a great environment for her baby sister to grow up in. The other guy Alex was the probably the most moral person in the group, wasn't feeling the robbery from the get go, but he likes the girl so of course he caved. But, even the vile guy, Money showed selflessness when he said he was the only one in the house. I knew once they showed the burglars life especially Rockey, that she was going to be the protagonist. To be honest with you, she deserved that money.

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[–] a_ayres 8 years ago

Rocky was going to rip off a blind man whose money was substitution of his dear daughter's life, and she was willing to involve her Alex into illegal trouble for her own gain and then he ended up dead...

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[–] wooody 8 years ago

Exactly...

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[–] iheartnormi 8 years ago

True but what if she was doing it for her sister. Is she still selfish?

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[–] a_ayres 8 years ago

Yes. What do you think her boyfriend, her friend and a random blind man owe to her little sister? The blind man gets very rich but at what cost? Either work your ass off for years or get someone you love run over by a rich person, choose one way to pay your due.

And to say she did that for her little sister is a reach when she too is enjoying the better life. And I'm willing to bet that the money is going to her bank account, not her sister's.

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[–] iheartnormi 8 years ago

And to say she did that for her little sister is a reach when she too is enjoying the better life. And I'm willing to bet that the money is going to her bank account, not her sister's.

Well not really, parents sacrifice a lot everyday for their children, and no not robbing people but, just putting their children's needs ahead of their own, that doesn't mean their whole paycheck is going into a 8 year old's bank account.

I feel like it is hard for many of us to understand why she would do that simply because we are not in her shoes. Desperate times call for desperate measures. They were thieves that is what they did. The film opens with them raiding someone's house. She saw the opportunity when the old man punched is passcode and she went for it. At that time her, bf was shot dead and Alex was gone (so she thought), she did what she came there for. And the killing part is that even at the end of the movie, the old guy lives and to the world he is innocent, so yes she got the million dollars but, did she really win?

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[–] a_ayres 8 years ago

I understand why she did it but I never justified her action. You, on the other hand, wrote that she deserved the money.

And this is not putting the sister's need before her own when she was the one who decided on the rich and comfortable lifestyle that one million dollars could bring. The bank account thing I wrote was just to prove that she would be in charge of the money and would spend it to satisfy her needs first, her sister's second.

And yes, she won big. She didn't lose anything other than getting bruised and traumatized a bit. She didn't care much for her friends so she didn't lose someone she loved at all. And to think that people in the world suffered a lot worse without receiving a penny for compensation, here she got a million...

Again, I get it that she was just a human being who made mistake but that's different to justify her action.

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[–] skyppie11 8 years ago

I like to view it objectively and yes I do judge her on coming up with that money in a pretty vile way, this is just a story to showcase that. I don't want to think in black and white by judging her and saying "just work your ass off." It's a story about a girl who didn't choose the most wisest choice to get what she wants.

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[–] JimmiesRustler 8 years ago

Notice how the only people on this forum who support Rocky are all women. Hilarious. And you women wonder why men call all of you gold diggers.

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[–] iheartnormi 8 years ago

Unnecessary comment, that really is uncalled for. Men kill for money,yet it is women who get called whores when they sleep for it. What's your point?
***if the writer never included her baby sister in the plot, I would agree with you that she was a selfish person. But, he purposely included the fact that she has plans with that money that doesn't involve only herself. She is going to raise her sister in a better environment-which is not selfish.

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[–] a_ayres 8 years ago

She can just move her sister out and work to support her, and that would already be raising her in a better environment. If Rocky robs you for this same intention that you are so championing, would you still see her as not selfish?

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[–] jamieparsons1 8 years ago

What? When men kill for money they are called murderers. That's a bit worse than being called a whore. And women are called whores when they sleep for money because that's what the literal definition of a whore is?

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[–] iheartnormi 8 years ago

My point aimed at the guy who thinks that if a woman is after money she is automatically a gold digger which is not true. There are plenty of women who get money on their own, with out the help of men. SO, it kind of irked me when he said that.

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[–] masterkey 8 years ago

Felt the same way. She was always concerned about the money, even after her boyfriend died. Was rooting for the blind man the whole time, even after the whole artificial insemination thing(he was sort of a gentleman with obvious morals). My heart was pounding, only at the prospect of her escaping which happened.

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[–] wooody 8 years ago

They were all fatally flawed individuals. The old man was crazy...his mind snapped when he lost his daughter. The other three were criminals. Whatever they're particular backgrounds, they CHOSE to regularly break the law. It's just that this time, the payoff apparently motivated them to bring a gun and take much more of a risk.

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[–] mr_bickle_the_pickle 8 years ago

I wouldnt say they were "vile". Flawed, yes. Rocky was stealing out of desperation to get as far away from her abusive home life. Alex, I assume started stealing because he liked Rocky and possibly also some peer pressure. It didnt seem like he had any friends outside that group. But he was also very against Money bringing a gun and was the first to suggest they just call the cops straight away. Money we know less about, I assume he also stole because he was poor. But even then he wasn't totally evil as he could have easily ratted out Rocky and Alex but instead kept insisting he was the only one there.

And while the blind man had a right to defend his home, it doesn't mean he has to hunt down the other two kids. He could have simply wounded them and called the cops to take them away. But obviously he wasn't going to do that as he had a girl tied up in his basement.

We accept the love we think we deserve
http://mrsantonyelchin.tumblr.com/

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[–] wooody 8 years ago

For whatever they're particular backstories, they were ALL "vile" flawed. Rocky could have elected to get a regular job or two if she was that motivated to better she and her sister's life. She could have left the premises with the other boy when Money brandished a gun...She CHOSE to remain and participate for the money...She is one vile individual. The other boy was weak and in love. The other two were truly sick.

You are rationalizing big time to think otherwise. The ends, in this case, do not justify the means. All of the characters had the opportunity to do the right thing but in each case, they chose otherwise.

You should investigate a course in ethics.

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[–] mr_bickle_the_pickle 8 years ago

Im not justifying stealing, but she needed a large sum of money to get her and her sister out quickly. Working some minimum wage job at McDonalds wasn't going to achieve that goal.

We accept the love we think we deserve
http://mrsantonyelchin.tumblr.com/

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[–] wooody 8 years ago

But you ARE justifying stealing. She doesn't NEED a large sum of money to relocate her sister...She WANTS to head to California. She has other options that do not require stealing. Her life isn't in danger at home. She can stay there and get a couple jobs until she can move locally.

I don't agree with your rationalization. Sorry...

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[–] jamieparsons1 8 years ago

But she didn't. She was given a raw deal with her mother and where she was raised, obviously, but she chose to have a scumbag thief for a boyfriend. Even if the plan came through, how is having the little girl around that dick a good idea?

She acts like stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars and moving to California is her only option. Why not get a place in a better part of town or another town with Alex and both get jobs instead?

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[–] canalchivas 8 years ago

BINGO!!! Is also a last resort to other movies to emphatize with the main characters, is a tricky move movies does, this happens a lot in Romantic comedies. In my opinion it sucks.

KUTABARE!!!

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[–] Patchmyballs69 8 years ago

The way this movie started I thought I was getting a rare treat, a movie that was going to be a think piece on gun control, castle doctrine, stand your ground etc disguised as a thriller. Instead they chickened out and turned the blind man into an absolute maniac and I was completely checked out after that.

These guys were sitting on a truly unique experience and they were either too foolish or too freightened to explore it. This will devolve into a terrible franchise pumping out VOD sequels for years to come...

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[–] rupert-ian 8 years ago

I agree they were all vile. I don't care about your situation or motivations, when you invade someone's home to steal from them you are risking their lives and yours. They even knew he was home, a veteran who lost his daughter, and put their needs and selfishness ahead of his. Sure, he turned out to be a POS too, but they didn't know that.

People have the right to protect themselves and anyone who invades someone's home is trash and risks death all around if the home owner feels threatened and can defend themselves.

The kind of people apologizing for Rocky because "wah her sister needs her and her parents are bad" are the type responsible for so many of the problems we see today. Nobody has any accountability for their actions. Everyone wants a handout.

Life kicks a lot of people over and over and over, and they don't turn to home invasion or any other type of crime to try to fix their problems.

People died while committing a felony, so Rocky would have been charged with murder for that crime even though she didn't directly kill someone, and rightfully so.

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[–] pecinqa 8 years ago

Without replying to anyone in particular, I'll give my view on it.

Moral dilemmas are a theme in this movie. At several points in the film characters are presented with moral dilemmas. Sometimes these turn into moral dilemmas for the audience. Sure Rocky is a theif, but she's not a malevolent person, neither is Alex, and Money's entire character is a poser. At first we root for the blind mind, but then the audience is hit with a dilemma to keep rooting for him. I feel like these things were done for consistency in themes, and tone for the film.

As for why Rocky just didn't move out and get a job:

1) The movie doesn't happen if she does that

2) The film is purposly set in Detroit to exemplify the hopelessness of her situation. It's set here to show there's little to no opportunity for her.

3) We get the quick scene of the abusive home, and the sister in it establishing the need to get out ASAP.

Rocky doesn't just want out of the home, she wants to get right out of Detroit to a place to she views as the opposite. Detroit respresents the dark, depressing gloom of her situation, while California respresents a bright new start with opportunity. The film sets up that all 3 thieves, and Rocky's sister were to go to California after the heist. Doing that would require quite a bit of money.

I found this enough to accept the character motivation, and to suspend my disbelief.

At any rate, I think the film is purposely challenging how you feel about the characters.

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[–] leesjshez 8 years ago

What you say makes a good deal of sense, motivation wise anyway. But the simple fact remains - You screw over another human being, to get ahead, then you're scum. That's it. Rocky was in a bad place sure, but her way out can never be justified.

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[–] MyNameIsMulder 8 years ago

I didn't think they made the blind man into a Villian, more like a grieving man who have lost his mind in his own way doing what he thinks is right. He had no intention of killing that girl or anyone, he only shot Money because he threatened to kill him, he didn't kill Alex at first until he threatened him and he didn't mention Rocky to the police. So I don't think he's a bad guy, just not mentally stable.

The only one I didn't feel sorry for was Money, he was a bit of an idiot.

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[–] m300lg 8 years ago

Protagonists don't have to be good people.

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