MovieChat Forums > Jagten (2012) Discussion > Thoughts on the ending

Thoughts on the ending

posted 11 years ago by munecito337
77 replies | jump to latest

*spoiler*

Ok so saw this for the first time last night and loved it. Very sad and real film. The ending was my favorite part because it shows that after all that mess that happened even if he was acquitted of the charges he's still going to have that huge shadow over him and people are never going to look at him the same again. Basically noone trusts him anymore. But the ending where someone shoots at him in the forest. A lot of people say it was a hallucination by him but when I saw it. The shooter had a silhouette like a young boy and you notice that the shooter runs off like a kid. Now my first thought was Marcus. I think he was still being affected by his fathers accusations and is still being looked down on. Maybe his only course of action was to shoot his father and end all this mess. I think this whole situation was too much for him and traumatized him to the point where he now believes the lies and hates his father. That's my opinion though, anyone else think the same?

[–] SupermanDude90 11 years ago

I personally don't think it as Marcus and that it was a halucination.

Good theory though

[–] nite_eternal 11 years ago

Even after the accusations were proved false and they all went on the hunt I figured that he was going to get shot by Theo.. Especially after everyone was giving him weird looks at the end.

[–] commie-dic 11 years ago

It was obvious that it was people outside of Theo's and Lucas' normal group of friends. Some people still thought he was a sick pervert and were going to take justice into their own hands.

Probably the same people who threw the rock through the window and killed his dog. Theo or his wife were definitely not behind that, just like they weren't behind him getting banned from the grocery store.

[–] aatiya 11 years ago

It's not Marcus at all. It was a big man. I do not think Marcus is psychotic to kill his father. It was not Theo. Actually Theo was the only one who had before the acquittal an inner feeling that Lucas was innocent. He felt guilty all along.

[–] tailbonebreaker86 11 years ago

I agree, it was a bigger man, and Klara's brother is thin. I just don't see Marcus doing it, he had a great relationship with his father.

[–] cyclgrrl 11 years ago

It's pretty much an accepted convention in filmmaking that when they want to show that someone is hallucinating, when they cut back to the scene, the image has disappeared. I watched that part twice, and in fact, when they cut back to the scene, the figure can be seen running away - hence, it was real (and btw, I don't think we are supposed to know who it was - just an indistinct figure (ditto with whoever threw the rock and whoever killed the dog -they represent the people who are judging, not any character in particular).

[–] noveltylibrary 11 years ago

i like this theory:)

[–] GoodSOVeryVeryGood 10 years ago

Totally agree - this is what I saw and thought as well.

[–] jro95 11 years ago

It was Klara's brother who shot at him.

[–] Null_Inverse 11 years ago

^^^This.

[–] Rachiwesteros 11 years ago

Agree. Klara's brother

[–] 11 years ago

[deleted]

[–] cokey-410-61236 10 years ago

why in gods name should klaras brother shoot marcus? after all, klaras brother is the one carrying the fault ( he and his friend showed her the weener pic ).

it´s not important who of the characters we see at the end. its a somebody, a personalization of the curse thats hang over lucas head from this day on. klara, this little witch..

[–] Airman87 10 years ago

why in gods name should klaras brother shoot marcus? after all, klaras brother is the one carrying the fault ( he and his friend showed her the weener pic ).

In the scene with Klara and her brother decorating the gingerbread house (or whatever it was), he started crying and was clearly emotional. He probably genuinely thought she was abused. I doubt he would remember showing her the pronographic photo, even in playing; or even if he did, connect it to the allegation.

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When logic and science aren't on your side, you always lose.

[–] kswiss89 11 years ago

The impression I got was that it was Torsten too.

"Even though I'm no more than a monster - don't I, too, have the right to live? " -Oh Dae-Su

[–] flashg13 11 years ago

Its definitely Klara's brother. Marcus had a great relationship with his father and producers made that clear to us in few scenes so its not likely that he shot at his father.

[–] ola11 11 years ago

That's Klara's brother but from the scene where Marcus and him hug and back in good relationship so maybe someone else from the neighborhood who still hate Lucas.

[–] absoluteness7 11 years ago

That is it ...

[–] david-rf 10 years ago

Yeah. Or a Texas policeman.

VIVA LA VINYL

[–] dustypistol 10 years ago

Yep! The hair on the shooter was what gave it away for me. No one else had big fluffy untamed hair except her brother.

Interestingly enough, I also thought (throughout the film) that he was the one who abused Klara. She projected that abuse onto Lucas, possibly because of some Freudian attraction to Lucas, the older, attention-giving male outside the family. This was because he and other kid shoved that picture in Klara's face at the beginning ("big hard rod, Klara!!" or whatever they were yelling), AND the REALLY UNSETTLING LOOK he gave her for quite a few minutes while they were playing with the Christmas / Santa dolls / cresh / toys / whatever. THAT was the scene where I thought, um... child molester. :(

My psych course monster rears its ugly head. :)

[–] sackofwhine 8 years ago

Yep

[–] BlackDog123 11 years ago

I thought it was a metaphor for him becoming the hunted rather than the hunter - not a hallucination, exactly, but more like a brief flashback of his trauma. He appears to have lost his bloodlust (enjoying the quiet beauty of the deer without firing, even though he's a good shot and probably could have killed it). He also looked happy but nervous during the toast for his son's birthday, and looked around with an uneasy smile and trepidation. I thought it was meant to indicate that life would never really go back to "normal." Not only are there people peripheral to his group of friends that continue to suspect him, but his friends themselves probably carry quite a bit of guilt for how they treated them and may not know how do deal with it (inadvertently pulling away from him).

However, after reading some other posts that include comments from the director, it seems that a literal shot was taken at him. That being the case, I agree with other posters that it looked like it could have been Klara's brother.

Great movie. 9/10.

They're coming to get you, Barbara!

[–] myosis 11 years ago

I also agree about the metaphoric sense... The title of the movie is 'The Hunt'. There he is at the end, initiating his son to hunting deer. What does it feel like to be hunted? The end.

[–] BringBackIMDbMessageBoards (6) 2 years ago

Him not hunting meaning he's now prey. And prey to society

[–] iszcross 11 years ago

I don't think there's any question that someone took a shot at him. It was definitely a younger male. I'm 90% sure it was Theo's son. I think he has to know (as he was a bright chap) that nothing will ever be what it was agin for him there. I would feel that I needed a change and to move. The things that happened to him, the accusations, the looks.....I wouldn't want anything to do with those people. This film made me feel the same way "We Need to Talk About Kevin" did.......both excellent thought provoking films that leave you feeling helpless and frustrated but glad that you saw such well crafted films.

[–] machys 11 years ago

^^This was how i interpreted then ending. While everything"seems" to have reverted back to normal 1y later, there will ALWAYS be people who *believe* you/someone is guilty despite the evidence. He will always be looking over his shoulder.

...For your health.

[–] paul-fruehauf-18-831599 11 years ago

I thought the whole ending was a hallucination. That's because such accusations tend to stick, no matter if innocence is proven or not. But then, these were lifelong friends of Lucas. They should have found a basis to talk.

Must have been Torsten. The guy who, if you remember, started it all by showing Klara the graphic picture in the first place.

Yup. That went well.

[–] rawktober 11 years ago

I re-watched it. There is a chunk of wood taken out of the tree next to him. A real shot.

[–] Danielle2001 11 years ago

actually on the DVD there is an alternate ending where he actually gets shot down and die.

[–] daimposter 11 years ago

I sure hope that final 10-15 minutes was a hallucination because I didn't think it was and thus the ending wouldn't make sense. I hated the ending (except the shot at the end) because as you stated, accusations like this tend to stick in real life. There is no way that those people, even his friends gathered at the end, can do a 180 and then another 180. Friendships are broken.....people can forgive but all that drama doesn't just disappear.

And he gets his girlfriend back too? It was too good of an ending.

[–] dustypistol 10 years ago

It wasn't a hallucination, so it wasn't too good of an ending.

Confused by your wording if that's what you were hoping for or not, but there it is.

[–] daimposter 10 years ago

It wasn't a hallucination, so it wasn't too good of an ending.

Yeah, that's what I was stating...or trying to in my previous ramble of a comment. If it's not a hallucination, the ending is not that good.

[–] holzxtac 11 years ago

I think it was Torsten who shot at him and he could have possibly abused her. The scene where they were putting together the Christmas decoration scene and when she cried out that it was snowing...he started crying quietly. He either felt bad that he had abused her and caused so much trouble for all involved or he felt bad for her and believed she had been abused and couldn't stomach it because in that moment he saw how innocent and sweet she is. He shot at Lucas because now that people are starting to believe that Lucas isn't capable of something like that, it's possible that he could be found out? He also shushed his friend who showed her the pornography and when she was sitting in the dark talking to Gerthe she said she hates men, etc. I don't know. A really amazing film and a tremendous story that really gets you riled up regardless of whether you believe she was being abused or not.

[–] koschwarz 11 years ago

I think the meaning of the last scene was the sign of stigmatization that will last forever. It doesn't matter who shot at Lucas. Relatives and friends may forgived him but the society will never forget...

Torsten probably felt a guilty conscience because he and his buddies showed porn pictures to Klara, and he realized it may have something to do with these events.

[–] denmil7-1 11 years ago

that's probably it.It's a fear he has to live with for the rest of his life

[–] theallenjohan 11 years ago

It was someone else.

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[–] bootblack987 11 years ago

Yes, another scene near the end of the movie shows Marcus (Lucas' son) and Theo's son hanging out and laughing together outside someone's home or the community hall. The two are laughing together with a few of their friends. It's pretty clear that both Theo and his son are on good terms with Lucas and Marcus both.

I thought the shot of the shooter was someone with longish, curly hair highlighted by the sun behind him.

And lastly, in other threads, people have posted that the director has stated that there definitely WAS a shooter, that it was not something that was just in Lucas' head. One poster made it sound like the director was surprised anyone wold think that there was NOT a shooter.

[–] olafur333-70-25310 11 years ago

It may or may not have been meant by the creators of the film, within the context of the world, that it was a hallucination. As audiences, I believe it is completely besides the point, in fact it is utterly swaying past the point into some discussion of psychosis to focus the attention on this question.

Whether he was hallucinating or not, within the context of story progression, that scene is a perfect metaphor for his life, being shot at, or that he feels as if he's always being shot at. This is the final scene of the movie, and that emphasizes the idea that this is how things will be for the rest of his life. That has been an accepted interpretation, but...

When it comes to it, it is a matter of preference when discussing whether he was hallucinating, it's one of those things that don't exactly matter for the outcome of the film. The ending scene is within context of the point and theme, not necessarily to reality or even the rules that the film itself establishes. For me personally, this is completely valid storytelling.

"It's all about applying the right pressure"

[–] lennonforever 11 years ago

Whether he was hallucinating or not, within the context of story progression

I agree but we never saw him hallucinate before this? I mean it's all rather a shallow ending if we are made to believe it's an hallucination. That is NOT valid storytelling to me.

I never drink, wine

[–] dustypistol 10 years ago

It seems like the people who see it as a metaphor or symbol of the stigma / hatred of him never going away, aren't capable of also seeing it as there really being a shooter.

"There wasn't a shooter - it just meant that people still think badly of him even against all the evidence he was innocent!!"

...It's BOTH. He DID get shot at (evidenced by chunk out of tree, person running away after he blinks)

and it ALSO works to show that that's still how some people feel after he's been decided to be innocent by cops, Theo, etc.

IMO, her brother abused her. There are several scenes that hint at this... and he probably shot @ Lucas out of guilt and fear that he himself might be found out.