MovieChat Forums > Unknown (2011) Discussion > Did I Miss Something ???

Did I Miss Something ???

posted 9 years ago by msdemos
14 replies | jump to latest

After the movie ended, I realized I didn't know why the Liam Neeson character (Dr. Martin Harris) suddenly seemed to turn "good" once his memory returned, by trying to stop the Arab Prince from being killed by the bomb he originally hid in the hotel when he was "bad" (prior to the accident that caused him to completely lose his memory).

I was watching the second half of this movie while doing something else, and wonder if I missed the explanation (if any was given) as to why he seemed to have this sudden change of heart (if, in fact, he actually did).

Anyone ??? 

SAVE FERRIS

[–] alconway 9 years ago

No it wasn't explained

[–] gabypanama 9 years ago

it was, by the other bad guy who he though was "a friend": because of his post accident confusion/disorientation, trouble remembering details about his past and about his true self, he mixed-up his memoirs and believed that the character he was playing (the Dr. giving attending the conference) was who he really was, and completely forgot the elaborate assassination plan. He though he was an ordinary guy who got his identity stolen..and now had a chance to avoid the death of an innocent man.
Silly movie with non original plot, yes, but there was no plot-hole there.

[–] KaEight 9 years ago

It wasn't until almost the very end of the movie that he started to remember himself as the bad guy assassin. My take is that he got to see what it was like to be the good guy and enjoyed that version of himself more. Either that or Diane's beauty has the power to change mankind. Or both lol

[–] gcarras (2772) 6 years ago

Both is the answer. Just re-watched, got to the end, and it reinforced our point (VERY good movie, I saw in theater and highly suggest)

[–] 9 years ago

[deleted]

[–] doubl3 8 years ago

Yeah, they just made no sense with that, which reminds me of similar plots in other movies, too. Maybe someone could say the amnesia made them think differently or something, but really it just makes no sense to magically suddenly want good when they had been bad.

[–] Skoony 8 years ago

Because 🎵 we are all good in the insideee 🎵

[–] There-Can-Be-Only-One 8 years ago

Please, I beg you, tell me how you made Liam Neeson's name into a clickable link! I have spent a ridiculous amount of time fooling around with different methods, even following step-by-step instructions, and it never worked. It would be so helpful sometimes!

[–] PenguinCat 8 years ago

I would like to know also.

[–] Eve_of_Destruction 8 years ago

5th one down says Name Link:

http://www.imdb.com/help/boards/markup

They used:

Cynthia Lea

You type link= inside the brackets [ ]

Then go to that actors page and in their URL is their special number. For Cynthia Lee it is:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2106835

Al Pacino would be: [ link=nm0000199 ] but with no spaces between brackets and words:

Al Pacino

EDIT:
You can do titles etc also:

Highlighting and Linking

[link]... Name Link: [link=nm2106835] URL link: Cynthia Lea
[link]... Title Link: [link=tt0093832] URL link: Red's Dream
[link]... Character Link: [link=ch0000007] URL link: James Bond
[link]... Company Link: [link=co0023400] URL link: Paramount Pictures
[link]... Event Link: [link=ev0000003] URL link: The Academy Awards
[link]... User Link: [link=ur1000000] URL link: Col Needham
[email]...[/email] Email link: [email][email protected][/email]

Eve_of_Destruction

[–] lts20stl 8 years ago

He didn't really start to recall his full previous identity until the bomb exploded and he got hit on the head again while fighting the other Dr. Martin Harris. And at that point I didn't think it was a problem that he turned "good". He was a professional killer. Nothing personal. It's just business. He apparently didn't have a problem killing people if he approached it as his job. At that point at the end though he had no job, no identity, no life. He was basically starting everything fresh and the only thing he had was this fit bird to run away with. Why kill her? Go live your life and enjoy I guess. There is that moment when he's holding the glass shard when everyone is wondering if he's going to go good or kill her though, including himself I think.
I would be interested to know, however, from a scientific viewpoint, if people who awaken from amnesia retain these moral aspects of their personality. In real life, if someone gets bumped on the head and forgets everything/a lot and they were evil beforehand, will they still have those evil behaviours? Dunno.

"I'm going to run them off their feet." -Harold Abrahams

[–] msdemos 8 years ago

Well put, "lts20stl" !!! You make some very good points.

And thanks to everyone else who responded, to help me clear this (somewhat) bothersome question up!



SAVE FERRIS

[–] johnral (138) 5 years ago

This is a good point. Perhaps they could have fixed this by suggesting that Martin started to change before he had the accident, and the accident and new identity sort of pushed him over the edge, into being a good guy. But yes, it seems strange that a trained, cold-blooded killer could turn 180 degrees so quickly. That's not a memory issue; that's a fundamental personality/morality issue, that would not typically change with a bump on the head. Similarly, toward the end of the movie the 2nd Martin Harris comments that Liam has forgotten his fighting skills, and this seems basically true throughout the movie. There are other movies where a super-spy has amnesia but then has these remarkable abilities; but that does not happen here; Liam seems like a true professor-type, and not an assassin.