MovieChat Forums > The World's End (2013) Discussion > A movie about Alcoholics Anonymous

A movie about Alcoholics Anonymous

posted 10 years ago by qubit01
12 replies | jump to latest

This movie is about AA. It starts out with a guy sitting at an AA meeting. He decides to go off the wagon and do the crawl. His bestie has been sober for 16 years. They do the 12 steps together (12 pubs), bestie relapses but still helps loser drunk ("How do you know you're getting drunk if you're never sober?") and the movie ends with former loser drunk drinking water in a pub, now sober.

Just an observation.

If I don't respond, it's because I just don't feel like wasting my time.

[–] ezzy666 10 years ago

I thought it was suicide support group.

Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.

[–] Minus_The_Beer 10 years ago

It was. Gary alludes to this towards the end when Andy notices the bandages in his wrists.

Still though, 12 steps = 12 pubs. That hadn't occurred to me before.

[–] concerned_local_resident 10 years ago

The line where Gary is asked why he is so determined to have the last drink and he responds "because it's all I've got", broke me, I am unsure what kind of support group he was in to begin with but it did seem like some kind of an institution.

[–] McQueen1980 9 years ago

brilliant post

it is AA

[–] nephihaha 9 years ago

It's not AA, it's a hospital.

--
It's not "Sci-Fi", it's SF!

"Calvinism is a very liberal religious ethos." - Truekiwijoker

[–] zaid-adham 9 years ago

Great post. Didn't think of that.

If you look at the AA circle at the beginning of the movie as it zooms out from the top, there's 12 of them as well...and Gary is at the top at number 1 (12 if you're thinking of it from a clock perspective).

[–] nephihaha 9 years ago

It's not an AA circle. It's a group in a psychiatric hospital. Gary's appears to be there because he tried to slit his wrists (you see the bandages near the end of the film)... it's not because of his drink problem.

[–] Mazzy_Star56 9 years ago

Nice observation! It also ends with a galactic 'intervention' where the network tries to convince humanity it needs to clean up its act--which gary rejects.

[–] swanjac 9 years ago

I hadn't connected with the twelve steps! of course.well spotted. Pegg gave a great performance and I suspect connected with many suffering from this disease.Did you notice the 'Blanks' had Blue blood? Ink Blue...as in taking the pledge, where you write down your pledge not to drink again...maybe a bit old school..great script though.

i would never join any club that would have me as a member - Groucho Marx

[–] nephihaha 9 years ago

There isn't a single *direct* reference to the AA in the film. Even the meeting at the beginning isn't AA.

The blue is a running joke. In Shaun of the Dead there is a leaky red pen...
--
It's not "Sci-Fi", it's SF!

"Calvinism is a very liberal religious ethos." - Truekiwijoker

[–] davidparr-12867 9 years ago

The are 12 pubs / 12 steps in AA. Symbolic to me.

[–] nephihaha 9 years ago

Twelve signifies many things... plus there are actually thirteen pubs in the film if you count the Rising Sun.

--
It's not "Sci-Fi", it's SF!

"Calvinism is a very liberal religious ethos." - Truekiwijoker