MovieChat Forums > Catch-22 (1970) Discussion > Who stabbed Yossarian?

Who stabbed Yossarian?

posted 19 years ago by joe_jenks
15 replies | jump to latest

Just watched the film and I though it was pretty good and had some intersting points. One thing I was wonder though was who actually stabs Yossarian. Its probably not that important but can anyone answer for me? Ta

[–] vanillasky2001 19 years ago

It was Nately's whore

you're crazy

[–] Billy_McAvoy 18 years ago

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It was Nately's whore
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Yes, he is crazy, it was obviously Nately's whore. You could even hear her yell out in Italian the second time you see it (at the end of the movie).

Silly question, can't believe there's this much scroll about it.

[–] vanillasky2001 18 years ago

Silly question, can't believe there's this much scroll about it.

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[–] baidoasomalia 17 years ago

You can tell immediately that it is a woman because she has panty-lines. The second time you see the scene she speaks Italian, so you can pretty much figure who it is. Nichols made a wardrobe choice that provided a clear enough clue for people who did not read the book.

[–] keith-264 19 years ago

Nately's whore's kid sister.

Marlon the Cat 1991-17th October 2005

[–] joe_jenks 19 years ago

Ok Im more confused than before now lol. Thanks anyway

[–] agentjdp 19 years ago

read the book

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] den_quixote 19 years ago

mike nichols says it was the whore herself and he sort of apologizes for not making it clear in the movie. he seemed to assume everyone had read the book.

[–] 19 years ago

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[–] edcar47 18 years ago

This happens quite often in movies, where you think you know what SHOULD be happening but it just does not seem right when shown in the movie. WHO STABBED YOSSARIAN is one of those things. I know it is supposed to be Nately's whore (who blames Yossarian for Nately's death thus ruining her chance of coming to America). Now keep in mind the physical types of these 3 people (Yossarian [Allan Arkin], Nately [Art Garfunkel] and the whore) and recall when they are side by side in the movie. Nately is slightly smaller than Yossarian and the whore is very probably older and (as I recall) larger than Nately(who is 20 yrs old) . The whore is not a small woman, I can't be sure of her height but I believe she has a womanly figure - not skinny. And here is the clincher for me- the figure who stabs Yossarian (wearing the green fatigues) seems shorter than Yossarian and is simply too slim (does not have a womanly figure) to be the whore. This figure could almost be mistaken as a male. Also the figure moves differently than the whore. So we know it's supposed to be the whore who does the stabbing but it's still the director's choice and his only concern is cinematic purity or what looks best on film.

[–] felix-97 18 years ago

Well sure it's the director's choice.

And as it happens Nichol's has always lamented the fact he didn't make it clearer in the film. It was Nately's whore, and he intended everyone to know that, and was surprised to find out that people didn't. That's something he regrets, as he wanted it to be clear. I think he talks about it on the commentary too.

Admittedly it doesn't look like they used the same person for the body double, but then they wouldn't have shipped the actress from Rome where she was based to the set (can't remember offhand where they filmed but I think Mexico), given that you were never going to see her face. It also took 8 months or something to film so there's even a possibility that Nately's whore wasn't cast at the time they shot Yossarian's stabbing...

Sometimes the 'director's choice' is nothing to do with cinematic purity or depth of meaning, but to do with only having the second AD available to dress up for the shot...

[–] 18 years ago

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[–] sayan-jucse 17 years ago

I think Yosarrian himself explained to his friends in the hospital that "it was not a nazi, it was Nately's whore". Isn't that correct?

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[–] crazyj89 17 years ago

Also the figure moves differently than the whore

Well, she was in disguise and had to act differently, so of course she wouldn't move the same. In the book, this stabbing happens after maybe five (or more) other attempts to stab him, so Yossarian was sort of on edge for it (in the book anyway) and would have been (subconsciously) looking for her. He would have noticed if the person sweeping was sort of acting like Nately's whore.

That might not be the exact reason for why it happened in the film, but it's possible, and even probable in the context of the story.